Fusion Hearts
by Aquamarine Crystalline
Summary: Johan, an orphan in his village, finds his life changed when he meets Judai, a duelist-in-training. Suddenly finding himself involved in a dangerous and dark plot in this world of cards and magic, love might just be a heartbeat away. Spiritshipping AU
1. The Complicated Day

Hi, this is Rine-Line, bringing you a new Yu-gi-oh GX fanfiction!

Like all my previous works, this is Spiritshipping! But this secret major project is slightly more special and different. You'll find out why later. xD Oh and, as much as this story's title resembles a certain favourite anime/manga of mine called Pandora Hearts, the plot has nothing to do with it.

**Fandom: **Yu-gi-oh GX

**Type: **Alternate Universe (AU) Multi-chapter

**Genre: **Romance/Adventure/Humor

**Pairing: **Spiritshipping (JudaixJohan)

**Rating: **T

**Warning: **Shounen-ai (Is this really a warning? xD), some swearing

**Summary: **Johan, an orphan in his village, finds his life changed when he meets Judai, a duelist-in-training. Suddenly finding himself involved in a dangerous and dark plot in this world of cards and magic, love might just be a heartbeat away. Spiritshipping AU

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Yu-gi-oh GX.

Important Note: Notice one of the differences of this story from just the data above? If you haven't, it's that this story is JudaixJohan. My other Spiritshipping stories had the pairing the other way around, so this is my first attempt. Why the sudden change? It's because the plot called for season 4 Judai. So don't be surprised if you find Judai to be slightly more mature, silent, and badass than usual. xD

I hope you enjoy!

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**Fusion Hearts**

**Chapter 1: The Complicated Day**

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'_Once upon a time, an evil dragon reigned over the land. It caused destruction and sadness everywhere. Houses burned to the ground... Fields wiped out of plant life... People began to fall in despair and lost all hope..._

_But a mighty being came down to save everyone. Shining brightly in seven colours, it was another huge dragon. However, this dragon was different from the evil one, it was pure white but its body was embedded with seven colourful gems. It was very magnificent and its light saved the suffering people._

_The dark dragon challenged the white dragon but the good one was more powerful. With its brilliant and great light, it defeated the wicked monster. The evil dragon, however, swore that it will return as it disappeared._

_Its job done, the dragon god returned to its realm. But it never stopped protecting the people from the imminent return of the destroyer. It always watches over everyone and gives light and hope, making its presence known whenever a rainbow appears in the sky...'_

"And that's the end of the story."

"Wow, that's really cool, big brother Johan!"

"Yeah!"

Johan, the storyteller, smiled at the five kids gathered around him, sitting cross-legged on the floor with innocent and happy grins on their faces. He himself was seated on a small wooden chair inside the cramped room. The whole place wasn't very big even though many of them lived there but no one minded. It was still home for all of them, who lost their first home and their family.

Just then, the door opened and in came a silver-haired teen. His blue eyes swept across the room, taking the scene in, before smiling with amusement. "So this is where everyone was. Again."

One of the young kids seated on the floor suddenly stood up and ran over to the newcomer. "Big brother Edo!" He tugged on the teen's gray shirt. "Big brother Johan was telling us a story. Come join us!"

He laughed lightly before saying in an apologetic tone, "Sorry, everyone, but Johan and I need to go out now. Go back to your rooms and wait for Aunt Mizuchi to make lunch, all right?"

There were several cries of protest from the gathered children but then Johan backed up the other teen, saying, "Don't worry, I will tell you guys another story later."

"Yay!" Two boys shouted before all the kids started getting up one by one. They then piled out of the room. The last one to leave was a blue-eyed blonde boy whose hair was permanently up like a flame. "That's a promise!" He said before closing the door.

When everyone was gone, Edo crossed his arms and turned to Johan with a seemingly exaggerated sigh. "Daytime stories? Since when did bedtime stories go out of style?"

But his companion only laughed, rubbing the back of his head in apology, his wild teal-hued hair parting as his hand ran through it. "They insisted on it. You know how easily I give in when they beg for it like that."

The silverette rolled his eyes. "Obviously."

Johan frowned. "Hey! You're no different from me. You played with them the other day when you were supposed to help me clean the kitchen."

A light blush of embarrassment spread on Edo's face but he tried to deny it. "Whatever." He covered it up by keeping his cool as he huffed. "Anyway, we really need to get going now. I've already got my books." Then he raised a delicate eyebrow at his companion. "Where's your flute?"

The bluenette got off the chair and went over to the nearby bed, pulling up the pillow. Underneath it was a white flute with seven holes. "Here it is," he said before putting it in his pocket, one end sticking up.

Edo just nodded before starting to leave the room. "Don't forget to close your bedroom door." Then he grinned mischievously. "The kids might give you another heart attack if they hide inside your room and surprise you as you come in. It was worth it hearing you squeal like a girl though." He laughed as he calmly walked ahead as if he hadn't just said something scandalous about his companion.

Johan was just about to lock the door when he froze at hearing Edo's words. With a horrified face, he turned to face Edo. "You... You planned that?"

The silver-haired teen turned back, having walked farther a bit. "They were willing to help." The annoying triumphant smirk was practically plastered on his face.

"You..." Johan growled.

Edo snickered as he started to run down the stairs and out of the house, an angry and embarrassed teen following not too far behind.

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Johan yawned as he stretched his arms up while walking. It had been a tiring day, and it was now late afternoon. He looked upwards using one hand to partly shield his light green eyes from the sun's setting rays.

'_Looks like I still have time to relax for a little while before I go back to the orphanage...' _he thought.

He'd just finished his day work: playing the flute for the local bar. Edo was probably nearly finished teaching in the local school. The silverette was younger than Johan by one year but he was very smart, so intelligent that the principal hired him. Edo was more than willing, since it would mean extra income for the orphanage his adoptive guardians, Takuma and Mizuchi Saiou, manage. Johan himself was one of those orphans, and was actually the oldest among them, being sixteen years old at present.

The siblings both have work to keep the orphanage running but it was just enough to keep everyone satisfied with daily needs. So Edo and Johan decided to help in their own way as well by working. Lucky for the bluenette, his flute-playing was well-loved by many people so the manager of the bar allowed him to play for entertainment, most often giving him a tip as well.

He continued walking, occasionally waving or saying hi to the people who recognized him. He was pretty famous in their little village, the Ruby Village, for his music, just as Edo was known for his smarts. People said his music was heavenly, and it always calmed them down and soothed their minds when they were tired. Johan was just happy for that, he wanted the people around him to be happy and that was what he always thought whenever he played.

After quite some time, he reached his destination (he was unfortunate to be born having no sense of direction, something Edo liked to tease him about). It was a clean, flowing spring, located near the end of the village. The pure water flowed down from the mountains, glittering and sparkling in the sun's rays. What was unique about this particular body of water, however, was that its bottom contained, not a bed of stones but of jewels in different colours. However, no one dared to take any of those gemstones because according to folklore, whoever did would incur the wrath of their god. There were no plants or animals in the water, and when light shined upon the spring, it would glimmer in the colours of the gems, almost like a flowing rainbow.

This was the Gem Spring.

Right beside the spring was a huge, sprawling tree. It was not ordinary either. Its leaves were of different colours of the rainbow. Its foliage was thick that its branches couldn't be seen. Its flowers were beautiful, and the resulting fruit was very sweet and delicious. The tree was the pride of their village and there was a plantation of it managed by the villagers higher up in the mountains. But this Gem Tree growing beside the Gem Spring was the biggest of them all.

Johan climbed up the tree, settling himself on one of the lower branches. Because there were so many leaves on the tree, his vision of the area was almost completely blocked but he was content with it, as he leaned backward, propping himself on the thick trunk. A cool afternoon breeze was blowing, carrying with it the scent of the Gem Tree's blooming flowers. Johan closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of the wind as he put his hands behind his head, relaxed. Calm and peaceful days were nice and rare, in his opinion, especially with the recent troubles in the entire kingdom. Ruby Village was a small one so it wasn't very much affected by the rumoured unrest that mostly took place in the capital city.

He was about to fall asleep when his ears caught the sound of rustling somewhere far below. There was the occasional grunt of discomfort as well and curiosity prompted Johan to open his eyes and look down, just in time to see someone trying to climb up the tree but suddenly losing their grip on the branch they were holding for support.

"Aaaah!"

With speed he never knew he had, Johan stood up and held on to the branch he was previously sitting on with his left hand as he jumped down catching the falling person with his right hand. He managed to grasp the other person's hand in time. He grunted, whoever it was sure was a bit heavy. Or maybe not, since it was only one hand of his that was pulling up the unfortunate climber.

"Uhh..." He muttered, eyes closed, trying to withstand the strain.

The unknown person must have noticed the difficulties Johan was having so he tried to set his feet on the branch right below his feet, but he put too much forward force that ended up dislodging Johan's grip on the branch he was hanging to, and making the both of them tumble, him forward and Johan backward, toward the spring.

Johan opened his eyes and looked up as he fell, only to be met by a pair of round, brown eyes that were staring at him with equal wonder. It was not an ordinary brown, to Johan, it looked like dark amber flecked with almond, a mysterious and intriguing blend that enveloped Johan in its warmth. And he really would have remained lost in gazing at them had both of them not finally reached the water in their fall. The splashing water brought the teal-haired boy to his senses. The spring wasn't too shallow or deep, it was the right height for them to recover from the tumble down the low branch as they came up for air, the water level wavering somewhere around their waist. Johan sat down on the bed of gems, feeling the water to be around his chest, coughing out water he accidentally swallowed. He vaguely heard his unexpected companion coughing as well. Flattening his wet hair backwards, he looked up to face and finally see whoever it was clearly.

And it was like his whole world froze over.

It was a boy around the same age as him. His unique coffee-coloured orbs were once again met by Johan's own eyes. His hair matched the hue of his eyes, with the top matted by a slightly lighter orange colour. Droplets of water were everywhere, slowly sliding down the strands of his brown hair till they reached the end tip and fell to the spring water, creating small ripples continuously. Mini-rivers of the liquid also ran down his black shirt and long-sleeved red jacket. The entire sight his eyes were taking in was sending tingles throughout Johan's body. If his mind had been more coherent, he would have thought it weird that the other teen was staring at him, studying his features, as well.

And then the brunette suddenly sneezed.

He didn't know why he did, his mind was completely blank and his body intensely cold, but he just laughed with all his heart. The happy feeling was spreading to the deepest depths of his soul. Why? He just couldn't help the laughter that burst out of him.

Pretty soon, another voice joined in the chorus of vocal glee. Johan, finally getting his mind back into working mode, noted the deepness and firmness of the voice, and it sounded so... fitting.

Finally, his laughter died down and so did the brunette's. Both stared at each other again but this time, with a smile on both of their faces.

The brown-haired teen, abashed, rubbed the back of his head. "I guess now would be a good time for me to say thank you for saving me?"

Johan's smile, if possible, got wider. "You're welcome then." He was about to offer a hand for a handshake by instinct when he felt his hand stuck. He looked down and saw that their hands were still intertwined, never separating when he first grasped the other hand to save the brunette from falling and even when they fell to the spring. But the brown-haired teen just chuckled and shook it all the same. "You know... Somehow, I've got a strange feeling about you."

At that statement, Johan tilted his head. Strange feeling? Was that what he felt too while they were falling, when he saw those coffee-coloured orbs?

"Me too," he said, still beaming. Even though he still had no idea what it really was, and only knew that it was just there.

They finally let go of their hands, and Johan suddenly had a mental illusion of something like a tie being cut. Really, did he hit his head on a rock or jewel or something? Both of them stood up and got out of the spring, water dripping off their hair and clothes. The brunette removed his jacket and wrung it. "Oh man, this is bad. I didn't bring any extra clothes. Looks like I'll have to travel with my clothes dripping wet."

Johan turned to him at that moment, trying hard to ignore the tingling in his chest. "You don't have a place to stay?"

The russet-haired teen draped the jacket over his shoulder; his left hand clutched to the sleeve, and carried it like a rucksack. It looked more like a lopsided red cape in that way though. "Actually, I only came here for a day and I was planning to leave when night fell."

Before he could stop himself, Johan blurted out, "You can stay the night at my place."

He got a delicately raised eyebrow of confusion in return.

Despite the coldness of the water all over him, he felt light warmth in his cheeks. Embarrassment? What? "It's dangerous on the road, right? With the Dark Army and all that." Why did it seem like he was rambling? Why?

"Really? Do you manage an inn or something?" Brown eyes shone in an odd mixture of surprise, curiosity and relief.

"Ah, no. It's an orphanage," Johan replied as he leaned against the Gem Tree's trunk. "I don't manage but the ones who do are really kind people, they wouldn't mind for you stay over." He left out the part about the place being not too large, but he'd already made the offer, and saying that would sound rude. Besides, the younger kids were only glad to meet new people, especially around Johan and Edo's age. Majority of the population of Ruby Village were either old people or young children.

For a few minutes, the brunette remained silent. '_He must be considering it_,' Johan thought. '_But really, he could do that without staring at me, could he?_' Not that he completely minded, but then no matter who, you'd always be even the least bit comfortable if someone you just met was scrutinizing you, bad intentions or not.

Just when the teal-haired teen thought that the conversation was going to make it to the night, he received his reply. "Sure, why not? Thanks for the offer." He flashed a bright grin that froze Johan for a minute or two.

When Johan realized what happened to him, he quickly shook his head to get himself back to normal. What the heck was going on with him? Was this some sort of curse? But he thought that people were only allegedly cursed when they took gemstones from the Gem Spring, not when they accidentally fell into it. His knowledge of it was believable; after all, he lived in the village. But then, he had to admit that this was the first incident of anyone taking a splash in the spring. For a small village, news travelled around pretty quickly. If the two of them walked into the streets, their clothes wet, people were bound to make speculations and rumours would spread faster than wildfire.

"By the way, what's your name?"

Johan instinctively whipped his head to the direction of the voice. Bad move, for it only got him stuck looking at that smile and those eyes again. Finally realizing the intention of the question, his heart skipped a beat and a wondrous feeling spread throughout his body. It was mixed astonishment and happiness. It seemed stupid to feel like that because the query was the simplest of questions, but to Johan, it felt special.

Why? Because apart from one time, no one had ever asked for his name.

It was something both good and bad about living in a tiny village. People knew you from talks alone. Whatever you did was news and wherever you went, you were not an unknown. Proof of this was the friendly waves and the quick greetings he got whenever he went out.

'_Hey, Johan!'_

'_Hi kid! Nice morning, isn't it?'_

'_Johan, can you play the flute for us, please?'_

'_Oh, aren't you that flute player in Carbuncle Bar? Johan-kun, was it?'_

'_Johan! Give our regards to Takuma and Mizuchi!'_

'_Johan, could you probably introduce my friend and me to Edo-kun? He's so amazing!'_

"Hello?" the bluenette's train of thoughts was interrupted by a concerned voice. Oh, did his surprise show up on his face?

"Ah, sorry, I spaced out." If Edo were here, he'd be laughing at me, Johan thought. Laughing while still looking like the gentleman he was, that was like Edo's super skill or something. Aside from his intelligence. "My name... Johan." He smiled warmly. "You can call me Johan."

The anxiety on the russet-head's face was displaced by relief and glee. "Nice to meet you, Johan."

"What about you?" He asked, finally getting off from leaning against the tree.

The brunette smiled.

"Judai."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Apparently, Johan's inborn lack of sense of direction liked to work when he least needed it, because it was nightfall by the time the two boys managed to reach the orphanage. It was a two-storey building standing by itself in the eastern part of the village, surrounded by lush outgrowth of plants and trees. There were no neighbours or nearby houses. Of course, their drenched appearances raised a few questions on their way, but Johan tried to avoid them by saying it was nothing. Keyword here was tried. Because when he opened the door, even before he could shout "I'm home!"—

"Big brother Johan, is it true that you were fighting a Water Elementist?"

"Did you really go to Dewdrop River for a swim? But that's in the Emerald Town! How did you go there so fast, Big Brother?"

"Johan dear, were you bullied and someone dumped a bucket of water on you?"

-Simultaneous questions by the kids and Mizuchi greeted him. He felt so overwhelmed by the onslaught of questions that he literally took a step backwards. While the lady was worried, the orphans wore faces of excitement, thinking he'd been on some sort of adventure. Which was not true.

With a nervous smile, he raised his hands in a pacifying gesture. "Calm down, everyone. Nothing like that happened, really. It's just rumour. Um... Yes, I was drenched but nothing bad. I don't know any magic, there's no way I'd be fighting an Elementist, Rick. And you all know me, no sense of direction; I wouldn't be able to get to Emerald Town in half a day. And Mizuchi-san, there are no bullies in Ruby Village."

The black-haired lady gave a reassured sigh. "Thank goodness, Johan."

Rick, the blonde kid, looked disappointed. "Aww... I thought that you just had a grand adventure, and that would be the story you promised to tell us tonight!"

Johan laughed, ruffling the child's hair. "Sorry to disappoint. But I didn't forget that promise. The story I'll tell you is something equally good, you can bet on that!" He winked.

Shouts of happiness came from all five children before they were told by Mizuchi to go to the dining room so they can start dinner. The teal-haired teen sighed. "Rumours are really crazy. Thankfully, that's all there was."

A cool, smug voice cut in. "There's one more, unfortunately. Is it true that you found yourself a boyfriend, Johan?"

Almost immediately, Johan could feel his cheeks go aflame, even as he glared at Edo, who was walking down the stairs. Regrettably for him, it didn't work against the silverette, given that he was blushing, and Edo's smirk only grew wider at that. Well, that was typical of him, he never passed an opportunity to tease Johan about anything, be it his scrambled sense of direction, or his nonexistent love life. Johan never had anything that resembled a love life and he was never interested in that way about anyone, so Edo practically ate up this chance with glee.

Mizuchi, on the other hand, looked at him curiously. And because fate decided there was not enough fun at this situation and Johan needed to be embarrassed further, right at that moment, Johan's unanticipated companion stepped into the light. He was too far behind Johan before, so he wasn't seen at once. He looked confused. "Is something wrong, Johan?" he asked. He must have been waiting far too long outside and thought there was trouble by the entrance of the building.

It did more bad than good, unfortunately. The raven-haired woman gasped from shock. Edo looked surprised too, but kept his calm exterior and only raised an eyebrow as he stood at the bottom of the stairs. After a while, he said in an amused tone, "Oh my, I didn't think this one was true."

Throughout all this, Johan was just mortified. He didn't know how to act in a situation like this. Truth was, he'd never brought any person home with him before and this was an entirely unfamiliar situation. What should he do to settle the awkward situation? What was he going to say? His brain wasn't processing words properly so he let loose the first thing that he _thought_ made sense.

"THIS ISN'T WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!"

Oh, fate was now rolling around in laughter, and for added entertainment, decided to bring the orphans and Saiou Takuma along. The more, the merrier, right?

The dark blue-haired man came rushing out from the kitchen, kids in tow. "What was that abou—"

He stopped his question when he finally saw the entirety of the scene by the door. In reaction, he simply stood on the spot, frozen by disbelief. The orphans had varying expressions of childlike amazement.

Amazingly, it was the visitor who ended the silence, wearing a smile. "Sorry for intruding. Johan kindly offered me to stay here for the night. But I don't think I have your consent yet." He chuckled.

Fate was not happy about this but decided to stop for now. It wouldn't be good if Johan died of embarrassment now, the way his face was red like that. There'd be no fun in the future! So yes, enough this time. There are, after all, other opportunities in the future, and fate just cackled at the prospect.

Johan coughed, trying to get rid of the blush on his face. "Mizuchi-san, Takuma-san, Edo, and everyone, this is Judai. I met him at the Gem Spring and we... fell at the spring by accident." Remembering said accident was making him blush again but he beat it down. "And he said he didn't have a place to stay so I thought he could spend the night here. Sorry I didn't ask your permission first."

The two adults looked at each other for a brief moment before nodding. Takuma said, "It's fine with us, Johan. This is a place that accepts everyone, after all." Mizuchi smiled.

The youngest orphan, a boy with a brown mushroom-cut hair with the bangs parted, piped up, "Big Brother Johan, is he really your boyfriend? Because Big Brother Edo told us we cannot ask that, he wanted to do it himself. Umm... What is a boyfriend anyway?"

Edo's face practically said _'Oh shit, you did NOT just reveal that I was behind this, kid, I'm in some deep shit now.'_

"Oh?" Johan was all smiles, but the way his eyebrow was twitching said that his mood was far from happy. "Is that true, Nero?"

But of course, the silverette still was able to keep his cool, or he wouldn't be worthy of his title "Gentleman Prodigy"... with emphasis on the gentleman part. He merely coughed before saying, "Perhaps we should start dinner now?"

The two adults nodded. Mizuchi turned back to smile at the brunette. "Oh, Judai-kun, you can join us at the dinner table. There's plenty of food for everyone."

"Really? Thank you!" Judai gave a cheery smile.

'_He seems like a good kid. I'm glad he met Johan. The poor kid really needs to have more friends his age besides Edo.' _she thought before ushering the children.

Johan begrudgingly let Edo, who smirked, set out ahead to the dining room. He sighed. This was the first time his life got this complicated.

In all the drama, no one noticed that little Nero's question remained unanswered though.

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Dinner was eventful and noisy. Although that was to be expected when you have five little kids, two teens and two adults at one table, this particular dinner was much more boisterous than usual.

Judai and Johan came later than everyone because they had to get out of their wet clothes. Much to the teal-head's surprise, his clothes fit Judai perfectly. Of course that fact only sent his heart thumping a wee bit faster. He scowled at the weird sensations he was experiencing. What was going on, honestly? He'd never felt like this before. And to be frank, it was partly scary and partly exciting.

When the two of them entered the dining room, everyone almost thought that they were seeing twins, instead of Judai and Johan, which only resulted in laughter. But rather than entertain the situation, they all decided to satisfy their hunger first so the issue was dropped, much to Johan's relief. The younger orphans were always noisy when eating, the complete opposite of Edo who ate like a refined man, occasionally dropping a comment or two. Eating time was never quick when you have five curious kids who kept on asking Judai questions. The two adults also had queries of their own and Judai was only glad to answer as he ate.

"So where are you from, Big Brother Judai?" Nero asked with an innocent and excited smile.

Johan paused mid-way to bringing his food to his mouth. That was surprising, he thought, for Nero to be calling their guest a big brother. The kid was not one to be easily open to strangers, and yet he seemed comfortable around Judai. But the brunette did have a soothing air around him. Maybe that's the strange feeling he felt back at the spring?

Judai chewed and swallowed before answering, "Sapphire City."

'_The capital?' _the bluenette wondered. The distance of Sapphire to their little village took half a day by foot. What did Judai come to Ruby Village for? And he realized that he never asked his new friend that.

Rick's baby blue eyes shone in admiration. "Wow! That's so cool! I've never been there!" He was the adventurous type of kid, who liked exploring and playing out.

The head of the household asked the next question. "Judai-kun, did you come here by yourself?"

The brunette nodded politely. "I really did intend to come back before night, although this village is the farthest from the capital."

"Well, you'd have been really tired then. Luckily, Johan here found you," Mizuchi said.

At the mention of his name, Johan perked up and looked at the brunette, who only smiled. He gave a nervous smile in return.

This time it was the visitor who enquired. "Say, is this the only orphanage here?"

The black-haired woman nodded. "Yes. It is hard to manage with just my brother and me but we get by."

Judai's eyes widened in surprise. "Brother? You're siblings?"

Everyone at the table stopped their movements for a minute. Suddenly, the children laughed loudly while the two adults couldn't help but chuckle too. Johan chortled over his food whilst Edo snickered and spoke up in behalf of the 'family', "You thought they were married?"

The brunette turned slightly red from embarrassment. "Um..." He began rubbing the back of his head. Johan noticed he did that too back at the Gem Spring. So that was his habit when he was self-conscious? _'Cute,'_ his mind uttered. Then he blinked when he realized what he just mentally said. ... What? No, no, no. He wasn't noting Judai's behaviour or anything like that, and he certainly did not say any word that resembled cute... Did he?

The silver-head gracefully brought a clump of rice to his mouth. "You shouldn't feel embarrassed about it. You're not the first one to make that mistake, I assure you."

'_Liar,' _Johan's mind immediately retorted. Judai was the first to do that, that's why everyone was laughing. After all, this was Ruby Village, where information went around like the wind. But he let Edo be with his smugness, Judai would be more mortified if he knew the truth, anyway. Although he couldn't say he didn't mind that happening, because Judai with flushed cheeks was quite cu—

Tom, one of the kids, was grinning as he asked, "How did you meet Big Brother Johan?"

Like fate decreed (again?), Judai and Johan looked at each other. Brown eyes met green, and they stared at each other for a minute before Johan broke the gaze, turning away with a cough, "Why don't you start?"

Judai grinned before telling the tale.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Just when he thought it couldn't get any more complicated, it did. He really must have been cursed when he fell at the spring! Either that, or there was some minor deity conspiring to suddenly make his life a wild ride. (He had no idea how right he was... Wait, was fate a deity? Or just some cracked-up no-form maniacal sadist?)

First, the night bath. There was only one bathroom at the house, unfortunately, so they all had to take turns. Considering that there were ten of them (nine originally, plus the guest), it was a long wait. Fortunately, most of the kids bathed in groups, particularly the trio of Nero, Tom and Rick. It didn't help that the three boys spent half of bath time playing and would only stop when Mizuchi told them so. Edo always took his sweet time too (the arrogant idiot! he thought with a growl) so Johan was nothing short of frustrated when he _finally _got to use the bathroom.

He took off all his clothes and turned on the shower to full, allowing the water to wash away the fatigue of the day. And perhaps his worries too. And the craziness that came with the arrival of Judai. He closed his eyes as he just stood there, letting the water fall. _'Wait, why am I thinking about this?'_

In his excitement and hurry to take a bath, he forgot to close the shower curtain, not caring about the water spilling around. But then, if you add in the following facts: that he also often had the tendency to leave the door unlocked, that there was a guest in the house who didn't know about this habit, and that there was a silverette who took pleasure in getting his brother of sorts embarrassed, you only get one answer and one situation. And it's not pretty.

Apparently, fate does not know how to keep promises. What a sad fact.

The sound of the door opening was not heard by Johan over the din of pouring water and only opened his eyes when he heard a gasp of shock.

It was Judai, towel draped on his shoulder, having just opened the door, with an expression of utmost astonishment on his face. And yes, he was blushing. Out of shame or some other possible reason, it's unknown, however.

"..." - Johan

"..." - Judai

Both boys just stood flabbergasted, unaware that they were wasting precious water from the still turned-on shower. They had near-similar looks of mortification, and appeared like they were competing with a strawberry the way their faces were red like that. Why did it seem like they always had some staring session? From the time they met, it had already been four times. First was while they were falling, the second time when they finally fell on the water, thrice when Johan offered him to stay over at the orphanage and the most recent one was during dinner.

Well, if the current situation was to be added, it's actually five.

Reality struck the brunette first as he broke the gaze by looking upwards and to the side, which was basically anywhere but Johan, rubbing the back of his head while saying, "Sorry, I didn't know you were here. Edo told me there was no one at the moment and I could use it, and the door was unlocked, so um..." He hurriedly backed out and began to close the door. "Sorry!" And the bathroom door was slammed shut.

It was a good few minutes before Johan recovered. And when he did, only two thoughts crossed his mind.

One, Judai really did have the habit of rubbing the back of his head when he was embarrassed.

And two, Edo was going to pay for this.

~0~0~

The unusual day was not over. Nor were the mishaps it brought along.

The second event that made Johan's night more complicated was storytelling time. Currently, all five kids were there, seated on the floor. Edo chose not to come, saying that he had some school-related work to do, but Johan knew he was just trying to avoid revenge for the bathroom stunt. However, Judai was there. The brunette was seated on the lone chair. The chair faced backwards, so Judai rested his arms, crossed, on the back of the chair. With his usual seat taken, Johan settled himself on his bed.

He told another story related to the one he said during the morning. It was about seven beings related to the good white dragon. They were its faithful servants, who helped greatly in defeating the evil. While it was normal for the children to be mesmerized by his tales, for some reason, Judai also looked fascinated.

When he was done with the story, as if on cue, there was a knock on the door and Edo promptly entered. He had one hand behind his back, as if hiding something there. What was that? Johan raised an eyebrow in question. Edo only smirked in response to that before turning to the orphans with a smile, "I'm the messenger who is declaring bedtime, kiddos. You can continue tomorrow." It was amazing how he could go from conceited to caring in a beat with his facial expressions. Yep, another super-skill of Edo. He mostly showed his smugness only around Johan, while he was a big brother when it came to the younger ones, which in the bluenette's opinion, was totally unfair. But then if one were to consider the fact that Johan was older than Edo, then maybe that was valid reason.

The teen waited for all the kids to leave out the door before turning to the two remaining occupants of the room. Mischief twinkling in his blue eyes, he whipped out whatever he was holding behind him and threw it in the air. "Catch!"

Judai and Johan were startled by this and automatically assumed receiving positions, although the intended receiver was the brunette, who caught it with ease. Confused, he looked at what was thrown to him. "A pillow?"

Smirk still in place, Edo stated coolly, "You're sleeping in Johan's bed."

One.

Two.

Thr—

"WHAT DID YOU SAY!" Johan yelled disbelievingly. Judai just blinked, baffled.

Edo sighed exaggeratedly as he crossed his arms. "Do you intend to wake up the whole village? It would have been nice if this loud sound was your flute, instead of a shout from an overstated reaction but oh well..." He rolled his eyes. "Look, before you chew me out, which I'm pretty sure you've wanted to do since this morning, and which you'll never succeed in doing, hear what I've got to say first, okay?"

He jerked his head in Johan's direction for indication to explain, which the bluenette begrudgingly permitted with a nod. "Like I said to the kids, I'm just a messenger. This decision did not come from me but from Aunt and Uncle. We have a spare room but since Aunt was cleaning the attic yesterday, she moved the things from there to that room and she didn't have time to return them to the attic so they're still there. We can't very well have our guest sleeping in a room full of boxes and littered with dust, can we? There are only six bedrooms in this house. One is the cluttered guest room. Aunt and Uncle each have their own. There's the kids' fully occupied bedroom, five of them already in there and we can't possibly squeeze him in further." He ticked them off with his fingers, counting. "There's mine and yours. That's six. My room is full of books for my work, it's cramped in there. So that only leaves yours. Not to mention you were the one who invited him, so it's only right he sleep here." Edo looked smug.

"Wait—" Johan began but he was interrupted.

"Would you rather have him sleep on the couch?" The challenge was directed without any falter in tone.

"Well, no..." he trailed off. That would be rude. But...

Edo grinned, his voice laced with glee. "That settles it, then. Judai is sleeping here. Then, I take my leave and bid you two a good night." He was about to leave when he stepped back in. "Oh, I almost forgot... Judai, sorry that's the only spare pillow I could give. Take care of it and make sure to keep it away from Johan. He drools in his sleep, you see." He snickered before closing the door to avoid the pillow chucked at him by Johan.

The bluenette pouted. "Idiot." He stood up and strode over to the door to pick up the pillow he threw. Then he sighed before turning to face Judai, who was still clutching the pillow that Edo flung him. "Sorry, Edo's really like that. But he's actually a good guy; life's just been hard on him. Though he has a really twisted definition of fun, and I'm the unlucky victim." He looked sideways. "If you're uncomfortable about this, I'll go sleep on the couch."

Judai blinked before laughing nervously. "No way, this is your bed. I'd feel bad if you did that. I'm fine about this. Are you?"

"Okay with it, I guess." Judai was a friend; there was nothing wrong with that was there? Though, this was the first time he was ever going to sleep with someone beside him, he found that he didn't mind because it was Judai. Weird, but he let it pass as he turned off the light, letting clear moonlight illuminate from the lone window. He plopped himself on his bed and Judai followed suit. There was only one blanket but it seemed big enough to cover both of them.

He took the left side, his back turned on Judai and facing the window. It wasn't cramped or spacious, if both of them were on the edge, they wouldn't hit each other but if he turned the other way, he would be in front of his bed mate...

The bluenette curled up lying on his side. It had been a really strange day. His days were mostly normal, with just work to worry about. It never got this... lively. Even inside the orphanage. The sudden change could have made him uncomfortable but for some reason, it didn't. Rather, he felt happy about it. If only his days were like this...

"Johan?" a soft voice called in the dark.

"Hm?"

"Thanks. And good night."

He could feel the smile behind that statement, and it made Johan's heart race. He calmed it down by taking a deep breath. "You're welcome. And good night too. Oh, and don't believe what Edo said, I don't drool in my sleep, really."

With that, green eyes closed with a happy smile, letting sleep take over.

Unbeknownst to him, the complication was just beginning, as five dark figures cut through the night.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Somewhere in a road, there is a man walking with a worried face. He had long black hair tied in a ponytail, two long strands framing his face on each side, with eyes that appeared perpetually closed from behind glasses.

"That kid really likes his freedom-nya... It would have been okay to just let him be, if only he wasn't being chased by the Dark Army to force him to join them-nya..." He turned to the fat orange cat trotting beside him.

"Do you think he's in trouble now-nya, Pharaoh?"

The feline only gave a low meow of agreement, as both master and pet quickened their pace.

**To be continued...**

**

* * *

**

Chapter Notes:

-The orphan kids are NOT OCs. They are minor characters in the anime series. If you don't recognize them:

1) Rick- He is Professor Cobra's stepson who died in an accident.

2) Nero- A young boy in the Dark World arc. He wants to be a duelist, and his only relative is his grandfather, an old man who wants to protect him from Haou's army.

3) Tom- He is shown in Johan's flashback in that super special awesome Spiritshipping scene in Episode 115 (after Judai's duel with Prof. Satou Kouji). He's the original owner of the Jerry Beans Man card that Giese won in the duel that had the ante-rule.

I've only introduced 3 out of 5 orphans, but rest assured the remaining two are also minor characters in the anime. Want to take a guess? You have a girl and another boy.

-Some of the significant places are based on cards.

1) Gem Spring- this is one of Johan's spell cards. He used this in Episode 172, when Judai mistook him for Mr. T. If you look at the card's picture, it shows a circular body of water while a cluster of gems lay submerged in the middle.

2) Gem Tree- another Gem Beast deck spell card. It was shown in Episode 130, The Awakening of the Rainbow Dragon, and helpful in Johan's quest to gather the seven Gem Beasts and summon Rainbow Dragon. Once again, look at the card design, and you'll see the resemblance to the fic.

3) Ruby Village, Emerald Town and Sapphire City- I think you know where this is going ;)

4) Carbuncle Bar- Refer to number 3. xD

Dewdrop River is the only one that's partly original here but heck; it's just a body of water. xD

There'll be more of these popping up in the later chapters. If you want to see them more clearly, you can visit the Janime website.

-Johan having no sense of direction: While this provides fuel to the humour of this fic, it is something I did not completely make up. In Episode 106, where Johan is introduced, he is late to the opening ceremony. His dialogue went somewhat like this: "Ah, I'm late, I'm late! I've got no sense of direction!" It's funny, anyway. xD

-Judai not being his hyper self: Like I said before the fic, he is based on season 4 Judai. Watch him in episodes 157-160. I'm writing him here using that attitude as basis in my mind. While he still smiles and stuff, it's less childlike. And, this is why this fic screams JudaixJohan.

Now, about this chapter... It was so fun to write! It's so fun to write Edo like this, and fate too (sadists!). Edo has a lot of super-skills, and that's what gets him lots of fangirls. So... what do you think of the story so far? I think there are a lot of magic world stories in the Spiritshipping fandom, and I hope mine finds its own place for readers to enjoy.

Review if you please. All comments and suggestions are appreciated.

~Rine-Line


	2. Desire to Protect

Hi, Rine-Line here again, presenting the second chapter of Fusion Hearts!

I've gotten mixed feedback for the first chapter, eh? Let me answer a particular one that came up.

Edo being slightly OOC in the previous chapter: I admit this is my first time writing the D-hero duelist, so I expected something like this to come sooner or later. While I said that Edo was fun to write in the previous chapter, he was also the most difficult. It was a conflict of whether I write him _canonically _or _based on the situation. _I thought up of other series characters, but only Edo came to closest to the role of arrogant young brother without being too OOC. Like mentioned, he was _slightly _OOC. If I had written it with another character, it would have been completely out of character. Well, if that's too vague an explanation for you, then I'll just leave it at that, and do my best in writing the future chapters with him not being OOC. Thank you to those who pointed it out, I still have a long way to go, it seems. xD

Anyway, this chapter is quite long (25 pages). By the end of this one, I think you'll know why this fic is entitled Fusion Hearts xD

I hope you enjoy!

* * *

**Fusion Hearts**

**Chapter 2: Desire to Protect**

**

* * *

**

Brown eyes opened in the darkness of the night. The blanket was thrown off as Judai sat up, alert, before fishing his pocket for a small rectangular device with an orb that was blinking orange.

He frowned at it before turning to look beside him, where Johan was sound asleep, facing him, eyes firmly closed shut and lips slightly open, as his chest rose up and down in a rhythmic pattern. And no, he was not drooling. But he was a chaotic sleeper, moving every so often in awkward positions that resulted in him breathing too close to Judai's face. Not that Judai was comfortable about that, but he had to admit that Johan smelled rather... nice. Like mint and vanilla.

It was easy for him to sleep anywhere and he adapted easily but to get in a deep sleep was another matter. Although back then, before his life was thrown into chaos, he was a heavy sleeper who couldn't be woken up by the combined force of explosions and shouting, and now he wasn't. Then at the moment, thank his luck; he was woken up by _danger_, of all things.

A smile made its way to Judai's face when Johan shifted slightly in his sleep, as he mumbled something incoherent to his ears. The smile slowly turned into a serious one when the gravity of the upcoming situation dawned on him. _'I can't let him get involved...'_

Why he thought like that, he didn't know. But there was just a strange, new feeling in his heart that made him want to protect the sleeping teen beside him. _'Maybe because he reminds me so much of someone I used to know...'_

He got off the bed, careful not to disturb his new friend. But as he just straightened himself up, a sleepy voice disrupted the silence. "Judai...?"

Said teen quickly turned back, to be met by the sight of Johan sitting on the bed, his legs bended on either side of him, rubbing his eyes. His teal hair was in a mess from sleep, and his clothes were ruffled. The blanket lay in a heap beside him. He looked half-asleep but he seemed to be conscious in general. "I felt less warm all of a sudden so I woke up... What's wrong?"

Judai sighed. '_So much for protecting him_.' But then, if he was awake, he could go and hide in a safe place with everyone. That was better. Luckily the orphanage was quite far away from civilization. There won't be too many people involved in this. The brunette decided to tell him of what was to happen.

"This place is about to turn into a battle zone," he stated carefully.

That was enough to knock the sleep out of Johan's system. "Huh? What?"

The brunette looked guilty. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. But I didn't expect them to find out that I'm here."

"Them? Who are they?"

Judai gritted his teeth. "The Dark Army."

"WHAT?" Johan just about crawled on the bed and went closer to Judai. "No way! Why are they after you?"

Rather than anger, concern was visible on Johan's face, surprising Judai. He didn't think that Johan would be worried for him and that only strengthened the protective desire in him. "They want me to join them. But I don't, and the bastards can't get that into their minds. I didn't mean to bring trouble with me here, Johan, but I don't want you... I mean, everyone, here, getting hurt."

The bluenette stood and strode over to Judai, his face now unreadable. But his hand suddenly gripped Judai's in a reassuring manner. "Don't blame yourself. You're not the one at fault here, they are. I'm happy that you think of us here as people worth protecting." He smiled encouragingly.

Judai blinked, feeling a good, warm sensation spreading throughout his body at the sight of that smile. He couldn't help smiling too. "Thank you, Johan."

The teal-haired boy's smile didn't falter even as he let go of Judai's hand. "So what do we do?"

The heavenly feeling in Judai's body was replaced by adrenaline as he geared himself for action. "Wake everybody up and go hide in a safe place. Do you have a basement or something?"

He shook his head. "But we have the attic. Is that safe enough?"

Judai pondered for a while. Less safe but it could work. "It's okay over there, as long as no one goes out until I come back and say it's safe."

"Let's go then." The two of them ran out of the room. Johan pointed to their left side, to a door directly at the end of the long hallway. "That's the door to the attic." Along the hallway there were three doors on each side, including the one they just came out from. Johan's was on the left side. To their right was the stairs. So Johan's room was the nearest to the stairs... "The room in front of mine is the extra room. Beside that is Edo's. Next to Edo's is Takuma-san's bedroom. That's for the right side rooms."

"On my side... The room next to me is the kids' room. And after that, is Mizuchi-san's."

Judai nodded. "Got it." He now had a mental map of the entire house. "I'll wake up Edo, and you wake up Takuma-san and Mizuchi-san. After that, you can all wake the kids." He felt a pang of guilt. He didn't want to involve children in this. But he got rid of it quickly, time was of the essence. "And go to the attic and lock the door. I'll keep those coming at bay."

He made to move but stopped when he noticed Johan didn't. "Johan?" He tilted his head.

Green eyes were clouded with worry but then the bluenette quickly shook his head and ran ahead of Judai. "It's nothing. Let's go."

Judai followed, but for some reason, he couldn't get the picture of those sad peridot orbs out of his head.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Deep in the darkness, five figures ran through the night. Four of them looked similar in shape, but the one in the lead was different. He looked bigger than the quartet behind him. Their bodies were concealed in black cloaks, making them look like they melted into the dark surroundings.

The leader grunted and said in a low, irritated voice. "Troublesome kid."

The one behind him to his left asked, "Why is Mad King so adamant to get him to join?"

"He's a special case," was the reply.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Thankfully, despite the panic, they managed to organize themselves in the orphanage. Johan was able to explain the situation to the adults, who took charge of the kids. Edo looked serious as he assisted the best he can. The children were confused and scared but Mizuchi and Takuma tried their best to calm them. Judai was downstairs. The only girl among the orphans and the oldest among the kids, a girl around nine with long brown hair tied in a single braid, tugged on Johan's sleeve. "Big Brother Johan," she said in a worried timid voice.

He turned to her. "What is it, Jina?" He kept his voice as calm as he possibly could with the uneasiness he was feeling.

"Kyle... Kyle isn't here."

And it hit Johan: that was the reason for his restlessness. Another of the boys with a mushroom-cut but with bangs, and with a tail to his blue-black hair, and also the blood brother of Jina: Kyle. His head whipped up to the direction of the other kids. He wasn't there. Panic began building up in him. "Do you know where he is?" He asked her.

She nodded. "He probably went to the bathroom." It was downstairs. "But Big Brother..."

"I'll go get him," he said determinedly. "Jina, go to Mizuchi-san. I'll follow you all soon with Kyle. Tell them to let Edo or Takuma-san wait for us by the door to the attic."

She didn't let go, her worry increasing. But Johan reassured her with a smile as he knelt so that he was on eye-level with her. He put his hands on her shoulders in a comforting gesture. "Don't worry, Jina. You're all my brothers and sisters... The family I was blessed to have. I would never leave any of you behind. Besides, Big Brother Judai is here, he will help me."

Slowly, she gave a small smile. "Yes, Big Brother Johan." He removed his hands and she ran to the others.

Johan watched her go. His sentimental side overrode the rational side of him that was echoing Judai's warning that no one should go down. But he really couldn't leave Kyle by himself. Taking a deep breath, he made his way down the stairs.

Meanwhile, Judai was leaning against the door, his body tense but with an expression that told he was ready to fight. He was clutching the gadget from before in his hand, and the orb was now blinking faster, as if telling how close the imminent danger was. _'I've already sent one of them for help. Someone would have been looking for me. I bet it's Daitokuji-sensei. And hopefully, he's already on the road and near this village, and they would run into each other. Judging by how bright it's blinking, there are four or five incoming. I can't hold them all off by myself while not destroying this house. I have no choice but to take the fight outside. But I don't want to be too far from those inside this house...' _He put his hand on a square case attached to his belt, ready to draw out whatever was in there.

But he was surprised when he heard footsteps coming down from the stairs. He remained alert, but was shell-shocked when he found out who it was. He turned it to anger, a mask for his worry. "Johan! What are you doing here? I said no one should come down here and that includes you!"

However, the bluenette fought back. "Kyle's down here and I'm fetching him! You can't stop me!"

Judai studied the determined green eyes. He didn't think Johan had a stubborn side to him too. _'The similarities increase.' _He sighed. "Fine." Right at that moment, the little boy came ambling in from the direction of the bathroom. He was crying but brightened up when he saw Johan. "Big Brother!" He shouted, running to Johan and hugging his knees.

"Kyle!" The bluenette immediately felt relieved. Thank goodness. "Are you okay?"

But before he could answer, all three felt an ominous wind.

'_Shit, I let my guard down when I shouted at Johan,'_ Judai thought. He looked at the two boys by the stairs. He couldn't hesitate now, if he wanted to protect them, Johan in particular. He straightened his posture, taking a deep breath as he closed his eyes. He consciously felt energy flowing through him, like a river of power. He hadn't done this in a while, and now that he did again, it was like relieving his memories. Ones he didn't want to remember. But he tried to concentrate, letting the memory of those anxious green eyes be the forefront in his mind instead.

Johan stared in wonder at the brunette. He was being surrounded by a soft aura of glowing yellow-orange energy. It was a sight to behold. And he was even more shocked when the fact grasped him. _'He's a magician!'_

At that moment, there was the sound of feet landing in front of the door. At the same time, the aura around Judai disappeared as he opened his eyes, uttering one word like it was a spell of activation.

"**Duel."**

The door was busted open and Judai spun around, opening the small case attached to his belt and taking a card out, throwing it upwards. **"Summon, Neos!"**

Light filtered out from the card, before it was replaced by a muscular silver humanoid creature. Johan stared in awe; the power the monster was emanating spoke volumes. But what got him completely frozen in wonder was the magic Judai was using. _'Card Summoning...'_

It was the magic practiced by all mages in the kingdom. Since magicians mostly lived in the capital city and bigger towns, Johan never got to see one and only knew from rumours. Basically, it was magic stored in cards and Card Summoners used their energy to release the magic. Supposedly there were five kinds of them, and he knew them all but it slipped his mind at the moment.

There were three cloaked figures by the door. He spoke in a rough voice, "The kid's a Tamer, huh?"

The three brought out shortswords, and one card each from under their cloaks. "Well, we're not going to lose a kid, no matter what kind of Card Summoner." Under their hoods, Judai and Johan could see sinister grins. All three laid their cards on the blade. **"Equip Magic, Activate!"**

The swords glowed, absorbing the card like it was liquid and not a solid piece of paper. When it was over, the swords looked sharper and more deadly.

Sweat dripped down Judai's face. "Equippers huh..."

And that's when Johan remembered. The five kinds of Card Summoners. One was Equipper, like the trio. They used magic in the cards to enhance their weapons, to make it sharper or better. Second was Tamer, like Judai apparently was. Tamers used cards to call for monsters or creatures. Third was what Rick thought he fought when he arrived drenched the previous day: Elementist. Cards which can control the six elements. The fourth kind was Fuser, the rarest of them all and also the most unknown. Fifth was...

"**Power, Increase!"**

Instinct took over Johan and he grabbed Kyle and moved out of the way in time. In the spot they previously were was another cloaked individual, his hand having karate-chopped the floor and leaving a rather big hole.

Kyle clutched the bluenette's shirt fearfully. Inductor... With the ability to use cards to enhance physical ability in a similar manner to Equippers...

He lunged for the two of them but Judai took two more cards from his case. **"Summon, Flare Scarab! Groun Mole!"**

A fat mole with halves of a digger drill on its shoulders rushed for Johan and Kyle's attacker and intercepted him, while a black human-like monster in scarab beetle armour went the opposite direction to help Neos with the three Equippers.

Johan felt the panic of the situation gripping him. With the big hole at the bottom of the stairs, there's no way he could go up there with Kyle. Gritting his teeth, he lifted Kyle into his arms and carried him over the handrail from the side, dropping the little boy on the third step of the stairs, the most he could with his height. "Run, Kyle!"

Despite still being in tears, the young orphan obeyed Johan and quickly ran up the stairs. The bluenette watched him go until he was no longer in sight. He released the breath he was holding when he saw Kyle disappear to the hallway. At least he was safe.

Dilemma quickly came back. Now what about himself? He couldn't go up, he couldn't go out (not with the five blocking the way with their fight) and he'd only be a burden to Judai if he stayed. Damn it.

"Johan!" The brunette was running over to him. He felt momentary relief, but it quickly changed to fear when he saw another of their enemies bearing down behind Judai, sword raised high over him. It was too late by the time Judai felt his presence, having been distracted by his worry for Johan. Judai stopped when he felt the magic behind him, and felt the stupidity of his mistake. He originally felt four or five Card Summoners coming, so why would they take the lesser number? There were three to barge in for distraction, one to create confusion and finally, the last one to deliver a sneak attack. That was tactic. _'Shit.' _Just when his life was finally brightened up, even a little...

'_Am I going to die?'_

'_Is Judai going to die?'_

Johan was frozen in his thoughts, fear gripped him so coldly. He'd never been in a dangerous situation, much less one involving murder in front of his eyes. What's more, it was someone he cherished, even at least as the first friend he ever had outside of Edo and his 'family'. He'd only met Judai, it was barely a day, and he was going to die now? His stubborn side yelled, 'No! I won't let that happen!' But rationality retaliated with a 'What can you do? You're not a Card Summoner.'

'_I don't want him to die!' _He all but mentally screamed.

Then suddenly, a shiver ran through his body as an entirely different voice, deep and powerful, boomed in his mind. It was like he could no longer sense the outside world, barricaded in a bright dimension of his mind.

'_**Then why do you not begin the duel?'**_

'_**Duel?'**_Johan mentally echoed, surprised at how suddenly different his mental voice was. It was a mixture of the resounding voice and his original voice. It sounded similar to the activation spell that Judai did.

At that moment, he felt some force like a river flowing through his body. It was filling him with energy. And then it suddenly stopped, like a switch being turned off, but the feeling of the power lingered in his entire body. What...?

Judai was transfixed at the other teen, having been witness to whatever was suddenly happening to Johan. _'No way...'_

Unfortunately, the plugging of the flow also meant that Johan would be returned to reality. Suddenly, he could hear the sounds of battle again, and the previous predicament came back to his mind. _'Judai!'_

On impulse, Johan threw himself towards the brunette, who looked shocked. The unknown energy surged like a waterfall now, carrying extremely enormous force.

"JUDAI!"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Is that true-nya, Air Hummingbird?" Daitokuji-sensei asked as he ran, his cat Pharaoh trailing behind him, having difficulty because of its weight, while flying above him was a big red human-bodied creature with huge white wings and claws for hands and feet and had a face of a bird, evidenced by the sharp beak.

It nodded.

He looked worried. "This is bad-nya..."

Finally, the group arrived in front of their destination but the man suddenly felt a burst of magic so powerful it was pressuring him down.

"What-nya?"

He fought the pressure with willpower. Suddenly, Pharaoh let out a loud meow, while bright lights began shining from somewhere up, prompting Daitokuji and the human-bird hybrid to look up.

It looked like a portal of sorts, in the shape of a hexagonal gemstone. Although it appeared there was space inside, because that's where the colourful light was coming from.

"What is that-nya?"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Kyle!" Edo shouted when he saw the crying kid running toward him. He ran to meet him, enveloping the boy in a hug. "Hush, don't cry, Big Brother's here."

"Sniff... Big Brother Edo!"

The silverette carried the orphan in his arms, feeling apprehensive about the shouts and the sounds of battle coming from downstairs.

What in the world was going on?

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The two of them were in a place detached from reality, surrounded by a strong wind, but there was also an air-like force pushing them, as if guiding them. Suddenly, it stopped, and they were literally falling.

"Wha—"

A hole appeared beneath them, and this became their exit.

"Ahhhhhhh!"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Daitokuj's jaw was left hanging in sheer astonishment as, out of the unusual portal, two boys came out and dropped down unceremoniously on the ground. The portal then disintegrated in a burst, like a gemstone exploding into sparkles of light. He was too shocked by the weirdness of the fact that a pair of teens fell down from the sky to notice that they were _hugging_ but...

"Owww..."

He ran over to them and recognized the boy with his back against the ground. "Judai-kun!"

"Ouch..." He looked up when he heard his name called. His eyes widened. "Daitokuji-sensei? What are you—"

He stopped when he realized the position he was in. Apparently, the older man did too, just like the cat and the hummingbird. There was incredulity in all of their faces, and that's saying something when two of them were animals...

Johan's arms were wrapped around his neck, while his head rested on Judai's chest, and their legs were entangled in an uncomfortable position. He was unconscious but breathing heavily. Meanwhile, Judai's arms were also enclosed around Johan's chest, intertwined at his back. He quickly removed them with a crimson face. "Johan!" He shouted. The other didn't stir, much to his surprise, since they were very close he was practically shouting in Johan's ear. Gathering all his strength, he removed the arms encircled around him and gently moved Johan to the side, so the bluenette was now laying face-up on the road.

He looked just fine in general but there was something not right about the way he was breathing. "Johan!"

Right at that moment, the first-floor windows of the orphanage were blasted and out came the three Equippers on the left, and the lone Inductor on the right. Judai's three monsters followed suit.

Outside was the new battlefield. Judai initially wanted that, but not with Johan unconscious with him in the middle of it, although he had to admit that he'd be dead by now if Johan just didn't do whatever it was that he just did. _'Can this get any worse?'_

Flare Scarab threw a fireball at one of the Equippers, who slashed it with his sword, disintegrating it, but he didn't expect the next flame to come so quickly after the first one, and he was forced to roll on the ground to the side to avoid it. Neos let out a beam of energy from the diamond on its forehead, while the enemy used his blade as a shield against the continuous blue burst, feeling his body slide backwards from the sheer power. "Damn, for a Tamer, the kid's sure got some powerful monsters!"

The sneak attacker was making his way towards Judai again but with the addition of an ally, he was not about to do it a second time. Daitokuji whipped out a card as yellow aura enveloped his being for a moment and said the spell, **"Helios Flames, Activate!"**

From out of the card came a burst of bright orange flames more powerful than Flare Scarab's, aimed for the single Equipper, who preferred dodging it, and stopping his assault on the brunette in the process.

Judai smiled in relief. "Thanks, Daitokuji-sensei!" The odds favoured him now; after all, the older man wasn't a teacher and a great Elementist for nothing. He could shift more focus on protecting Johan instead of the battle. He was suddenly thankful he was a Tamer, because if he were any of the other types of Card Summoners, he'd need to fight himself and it would require him total concentration on the battle. He looked around him, at the three fights occurring on his left, right and back. His monsters were clearly more powerful, although Groun Mole was having difficulty with the Inductor. _'He must be the leader.' _"Air Hummingbird!" He called out to the red bird, who listened at once. "Help Groun Mole!" It flew towards the battle after a brief nod of obedience.

Johan, meanwhile, was still out of it, but his laboured breathing was slowly dwindling. "Urgh..." His face was contorted in pain, as he was sweating profusely. The sight ignited anger in Judai. He didn't care about the reason, he didn't care if those guys wanted him, he didn't care if all this was his fault in the first place, but if it got Johan in this condition...

Those guys were going to pay.

Narrowing his eyes, he stood up. The yellow-orange aura surrounded him again, and the pressure from it made everyone stop on their tracks and look at him. The wind picked up around them at the display of power. The four monsters didn't look scared, rather they looked like they expected this and wore ready expressions, awaiting a command.

"So you guys won't give up, huh?" Judai looked calm, but his eyes spoke of dangerous fury. _'I thought I promised myself I wouldn't do this spell again. The spell that changed my life... But if it means Johan will be safe... I'll cast my fears aside and defeat these guys!'_

Different coloured auras surrounded the four monsters as well, almost as if in unison with their Tamer. Flare Scarab's was red, Neos bright silver, brownish orange for Groun Mole and Air Hummingbird had gray.

All four with swords instinctively took a step backwards, out of fear and awe. The Inductor cursed under his breath as the Equippers clustered in a group, and he ran to them.

Everyone was so focused on Judai that nobody noticed Johan's eyes flutter open. He immediately felt the strain of energy in the air and he looked at Judai, back turned to him, in shock.

The brunette raised his right hand, forefinger pointing upwards. The tension in the air increased as the energy around his body seemingly disappeared but with it came the utterance of a spell.

"**Neos! Flare Scarab!"**

The respective monsters immediately took into the air at the call.

The raging wind got faster and wilder.

"**FUSION!"**

Everyone minus Daitokuji and Judai and the two remaining monsters stared in awe as a bright light shone when Neos and Flare Scarab made contact.

"**Summon, Flare Neos!"**

When the light died down, there floating in the air was an entirely new monster. It had Neos' eyes but with the black beetle armour reminiscent of Flare Scarab. It was a hybrid of the two monsters. There was also no question that this one was much more powerful. It was bathed in a red-orange aura.

"What in the world is that?" One of the Equippers was quivering in fear.

The leader put up a brave front, however. "Looks like we underestimated you, kid." He directed his words to Judai, whose anger hasn't dissipated one bit. "Now I know exactly why Mad King wants you for the Dark Army so much. There's no questioning you're powerful. However..." He sneered at Johan, who was still on the ground, and froze at the evil grin directed at him. "That teal-haired kid behind you has a very interesting ability. He's not an Inductor like I am, but he definitely did something weird to get the two of you out of the house faster than an Inductor with enhanced speed. Not to mention he brought the two of you, Speed Inductors can't carry others with them. " Judai's rage was immediately replaced with shock as he turned around to look at Johan. Their eyes met at once.

"He did it without a card as well. Ah, even with the failure to get you, Mad King will be intrigued with this news. In exchange for this, we'll retreat for now."

Judai looked back at him. "Huh?"

The four lowered their swords. "Scout-sama?"

The Inductor turned to face his minions. "We're leaving. Get a move on, you fools."

"Y-yes!"

Their swords glowed as cards came out of the blade, undoing the equip magic they did on it. They tucked the swords and the cards separately inside their cloaks, before turning around, ready to leave.

Shimmering cards also came out of the leader's arms, which he caught in the air and tucked under his sleeve. He turned back too, but not before leaving with some sinister parting words.

"This doesn't mean that we've given up on you, kid. We won't rest till you're in our group. Although you can probably relax a little after this, now that pursuit forces are divided between you and that other boy. Heh."

And with that, the five cloaked enemies ran off and disappeared into the night.

An uneasy silence lingered on those left behind, broken only when Flare Neos glowed, separating back into Neos and Flare Scarab. All four monsters shone as they transformed back into a card, flying into a pile on Judai's outstretched hand. He gave a small smile as he looked at them. "Thanks, everyone. You never gave up on me, even when I came close to doing that." He then returned them to the case on his belt. Taking a deep breath, he prepared himself on what he was to do next.

"Johan, I—" He began, turning around, only stopping when he was met by Johan standing up weakly. "Judai... You're... alive..." Green eyes were slightly teary but he had a most relieved smile. But then Johan suddenly closed his eyes from pain, before finally starting to collapse forward from exhaustion. Judai ran to catch him in his arms, and then he realized that this was almost exactly how Johan saved him from death back in the house, only this time, their roles were reversed. "Johan..."

Daitokuji looked amazed. _'Judai-kun... He's smiling-nya... I thought he stopped doing that when the Dark Army started going after him but...'_

Pharaoh mewled, as the black-haired man tucked his card on a case similar to Judai's.

'_But now... The Dark Army is after the other kid too-nya. I don't know exactly what he did but I have a guess. I just hope he doesn't end up like Judai-kun...'_

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The living room was a mess, with the big hole in the floor, the couch and tables overturned and the slash marks on the walls. It was destruction in general.

Mizuchi nearly fainted at the sight of it. This was going to take a while to fix and clean, much more difficult than the attic clean-up. The two adults and the children were stuck on the stairs when Daitokuji came in, Pharaoh in tow, followed by Judai piggybacking Johan, who was now sound asleep, his head resting on the brunette's shoulder. _'I didn't think Johan would be this light... Not to mention, his hair looks so soft... And he's breathing so close to my face again... Urk.' _Judai blushed.

"Judai!" Edo shouted. "What happened to Johan?"

A distraction! Yes! If he were to continue that train of thought about Johan, his heart might not be able to last. He looked up to the silver-haired teen. "He's just asleep. No need to worry, he's fine. But there's a serious matter that needs to be discussed regarding him." Judai looked so serious that Edo inwardly shivered. The Tamer turned to the two adults with a similar look. They looked uncertain at first, before nodding.

"Thank you," he replied earnestly.

Daitokuji nodded, as well. "But-nya, we can't have talks when you're all stuck there. Let me help." He took a card out.

Everyone looked curious (minus Judai because he knew what was going to happen, and Johan because he was asleep) as he glowed with yellow energy before saying, **"Wind of Recovery, Activate!"**

Gentle winds came out of the card, whipping around the room. The magical air picked up the littered wood and blew it to the hole in the floor, fixing it. A breeze returned the furniture and couch to their proper positions, the breeze picking up every little piece of destroyed parts and returning them to normal. The slashes on the wall disappeared as the wind filled it up with the minute pieces previously there. After a few minutes, the living room looked as good as new, as if a life-threatening battle did not just take place there. The winds came back to the card and the Card Summoner pocketed it. "There-nya. Now, where should we hold the discussion?"

The orphanage people were staring at him in amazement. Then the kids began shouting.

"Wow! That's amazing!"

"Cool!"

"Card Summoner! It's a Card Summoner!"

"He's so awesome!"

"I've never seen magic before!"

Judai chuckled. "Oh, I haven't introduced him yet. He's my teacher, Daitokuji-sensei. He's an Elementist. Well, a rather special one because he can control three elements, unlike most Elementists who specialize in one. Daitokuji-sensei, that's Takuma-san and Mizuchi-san, managers of this orphanage. The teen with them is Edo, and the children are Tom, Rick, Nero, Jina and Kyle."

The magic teacher smiled. "It's nice to meet you-nya."

The children's eyes were shining in admiration. The two adults returned the favour, while Edo did the same. Takuma said, "I think the discussion can be held in the kitchen. We can talk over some drinks. Edo, can you send the kids back to bed?"

The silverette blinked. "Sure, but can't I join in this discussion?"

Takuma looked unsure. But Judai spoke up for him. "Yeah, you can."

He smirked. "I knew you'd see it my way, Judai." He then began herding the kids. "Everybody, back to bed!"

"Awww..." Tom pouted but all of them followed anyway and walked up the stairs.

Judai then turned to Mizuchi. "Can I bring Johan to his room?" She nodded. Rick heard that and thought of something. "Hey, can we watch over Big Brother Johan while you talk?" It was obviously a ploy to not sleep. The others agreed with him and we're now looking at the head of the household with pleading eyes.

"Good grief..." The old man sighed as he lightly slapped a palm to his temple. "All right. But do not come down and make sure you never leave him till we're done, okay? Oh, and if he ever wakes up while we're still talking down here, Jina..." He looked at the big sister among the kids. "... Come down and tell us."

"Yes, Uncle," she said with a smile.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Judai didn't know if he should be relieved or not when he finally let Johan down on his bed. While it was a nice, fluffy feeling to have Johan on his back, not to mention that Johan wasn't heavy so he could have lasted hours with the other teen on his back, he'd rather not risk dying with a reason as insane as 'my heart is beating faster than a Speed Inductor when I think about how close Johan is to me'.

Hmm, could it be that he was fate's new target for torture, err embarrassment, now? (Oh wait, that sadist is back?)

In the end, he just decided to do what he intended and gently laid Johan down, with aid from Edo and the five kids. Jina and Kyle adjusted the pillows, while Tom and Rick grabbed the blanket and put it over Johan from left and right. The bed would be more comfortable than his back, anyway. Amazingly enough, Johan didn't wake up in the process. _'He must be really tired.' _But that was to be expected, in regard of what he just did, Judai thought.

Then he turned to the orphans and Edo with a solemn look. "I'm sorry."

"Hm?" Edo turned to him with a raised eyebrow; the children looked up to him with confused expressions.

"You all got involved in my trouble and I put you all in danger. When Johan offered me back at the spring to stay here, I shouldn't have accepted it." He looked really regretful.

But much to his surprise, everyone else actually _smiled_.

Nero was sporting a genuine grin. "Big Brother Judai, you should not be sorry. We are happy you came here."

"It was always just normal and only us here, and for once, there's excitement!" Rick chimed in.

Tom added, "You tried your best to protect us all, right, Big Brother Judai?"

To say that he was surprised was an understatement. They weren't blaming him that their house was nearly destroyed and they were all nearly killed?

Edo was chuckling. Jina had a gentle smile. "We're glad Big Brother Johan met you. Did you know that you're the first person he brought home?"

"Huh?"

The silverette took over the explanation, although he still looked amused. "Contrary to how you met him, Johan isn't exactly an overly friendly person. He's the oldest among us and he cherishes all of us like family but that's it. He rarely mingles with other people in the village, even those around his age. To be honest, I'm his only teenage friend here, but technically we can't be considered friends since it's more of a brother relationship. He talks to other people yes, children or adult, but never bonds with them. I don't know if him being not so open had anything to do with his life before he was found by Aunt and Uncle, but that's really how he was. Until you came along with him last night. Surprised?"

'_You bet,' _Judai's mind answered.

Kyle shyly added, "I've never seen Big Brother Johan so happy till yesterday."

Edo nodded then continued, "That's why everyone was shocked when the two of you arrived. You think it's just overreaction from us? No way. Johan honestly has never brought anyone to the orphanage before; much less call anyone his 'friend'. If he just met you at the spring, it should normally stay there, and he'd go home by himself. Not to mention, he even _requested _Aunt and Uncle that you stay. That's extremely rare for him, you know? In other words..."

The trio of Tom, Rick and Nero chorused, "Big Brother Johan trusts you!"

"And we do too," Kyle adjoined.

"Even if you bring danger here," Jina also included.

"And that's what all of us here always wanted. Including Aunt and Uncle. For Johan to expand his life and trust to beyond just us. I don't know his reason, what he sees in you or why he trusts you and treats you like a friend, but we're all glad for that. Why do you think Uncle and Aunt easily agreed to let you stay over? You're just a stranger that Johan met, there's no denying that. This is an orphanage, not an inn."

Edo took a deep breath before continuing, "But we let you in the house for the happiness you were giving Johan. You might think we're spoiling him like this but it's the least we could do for him. That idiot never thinks of his own happiness, you know. He thinks of our happiness instead. He's a total idiot." Edo looked grouchy but his blue eyes showed that he meant his words about caring for his non-blood related brother.

"So, um..." Nero looked at Judai with hopeful eyes. "Big Brother Judai, I hope you never stop making Big Brother Johan happy."

"Or you'll have to answer to us," Edo added with a smirk.

"Everyone..." Judai looked at all of them, smiling. He didn't know that Johan was actually like that. All he knew was the kind and friendly Johan he met at the spring. He didn't know what about him made Johan happy, him-whose life was slowly being torn apart by the Dark Army, but the fact that he was making even one person happy also made him glad. Ever since he was targeted, he'd brought nothing but fear and danger to all he cared for...

'_Mom! Dad! No!'_

'_Leave me alone, okay?'_

'_The Dark Army will go after my friends... So I should stay away from them, right?'_

'_Why won't you do Fusion anymore?'_

'_It's not your fault you're being targeted!'_

'_Don't shut us out, Judai!'_

'_I never asked for any of this! I just... wanted to enjoy using magic...'_

And now...

"Thank you."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Steaming, hot mugs of coffee and three adults seated on the kitchen table greeted Judai and Edo when they finally went down the stairs and towards the dining room. It appeared they haven't talked about anything serious yet, perhaps only the usual pleasantries. After all, it was Judai who witnessed everything, and it was him who started all this to begin with.

The two teens took their seats. Takuma was seated at the head of the table; to his left was Mizuchi while Daitokuji was seated on the right, Pharaoh curled up at the floor beside him. Edo sat beside the lady, and Judai went near his teacher.

Judai took a deep breath. All four took this as a signal for the discussion to begin and took attentive expressions.

The brunette began, "First, I want to say sorry to you, Takuma-san, Mizuchi-san and Edo, for not telling that I'm a Card Summoner, and that I'm being targeted by the Dark Army, which got you all here in danger."

The two adults nodded, and Takuma replied, "We accept your apology. Nobody is hurt, and that's what matters to me as head of this household. As for you being a magician, it's not a normal question you'd be asking anyone, so it's understandable that we never asked and you never mentioned. But do answer this: why exactly is the Dark Army after you?"

"I want to explain that too. Daitokuji-sensei..." He turned to his teacher who nodded.

"Well, I assume you know about the Dark Army from rumours. Basically, they're a group of Card Summoners, who use their magic for evil and spread terror across the kingdom-nya. Their reasons are unknown; they've never expressed any direct desire to overthrow the current king-nya. But it is true that they're looking for other Card Summoners to join their ranks. They recruit mostly adults who didn't join the army-nya."

Mizuchi was confused. "But if that is true, why would they be after Judai-kun?"

The Elementist answered, "Yes, it is baffling that they would be after a teenager-nya. However, included in their criteria for recruitment appears to be powerful Card Summoners, even if they are teens, and also those with unusual abilities for a Card Summoner-nya."

Judai took over. "I'm not particularly powerful but I've got some... special skill not found in common Tamers. I guess they think it's useful. So they began targeting me, recruiting me. Unfortunately, they aren't peaceful people. You could say it's not recruitment but coercion instead." At this, his face darkened, as if the idea was something that made him remember something bitter.

Silence reigned for a while as everyone processed the information. Edo broke this with a question, "How does Johan tie into this? You said earlier that this matter involved him."

At that, Judai suddenly looked uneasy, refusing to meet anyone's eyes. Takuma and Mizuchi looked worried, and so did Daitokuji. Edo frowned but looked willing to wait for the answer.

After what seemed like an eternity, the heavy truth finally came out.

"They're after him, too."

Judai uttered this in a low, sad voice. The response was immediate to the occupants of the house, as the magic teacher heard this already. Takuma looked like he couldn't believe it, Mizuchi covered her mouth with a hand and Edo grimaced, but only he had the composure to ask the follow-up question. "Why?"

"Because Johan can do magic."

Takuma muttered, "That's impossible."

The brunette looked like he regretted this but continued on ahead, anyway. "They saw it. And I saw it too. He's not exactly a Card Summoner and that's what's weird about it."

Daitokuji looked mystified by that. He only saw a gemstone-shaped portal, after all. "Would you care to elaborate on that-nya, Judai-kun?"

"Hmm... How should I put this...? It was so sudden." Not to mention, he was near-death too back then. "Well, you know how Card Summoners do magic, right? They first gather their energy in their bodies, then take out their cards and activate it with a spell."

Everyone nodded, following his words.

"To gather the energy, we do it with a spell. We say 'Duel'. After that, the energy would be completely in synch with our body, and we channel it to the cards to release the monster or magic in there. That also requires that we say a spell like 'Summon' or 'Activate'. Earlier, just as one of the attackers was about to slash me from above, Johan's eyes were suddenly glazed, and for a moment, it looked his eyes were ran over by a line of coloured light. And then he was surrounded by magic energy. _Without uttering a single word_." He emphasized.

That was certainly strange, everyone thought. Activating magic without a vocal spell was impossible. But if what Judai said was true...

"Then the aura disappeared, similar to a Card Summoner who synchronized with his energy. He seemed back to normal, but I could sense magic in his body. There's no mistaking it, because it was very powerful."

He took a deep breath then continued, though slightly blushing, "Then Johan ran to me and wrapped his arms around me, shouting my name. The moment he touched me, a bright portal of sorts appeared behind me, and we both fell into it, saving me from the attacker. We came out of another portal that appeared outside."

"What's weird about that?" Mizuchi asked. "Can't normal Card Summoners do something like teleportation?"

"No, they can't-nya." It was Daitokuji who answered with a worried face. "What's more, Johan-kun did this all without a card. Magic without a card is virtually impossible-nya. The reason there are cards is because normal magic energy can't be channelled directly in the open, and can only be done through cards-nya. Furthermore, what he did was something even beyond an Inductor with Speed, the closest we could possibly compare him to with what he just did, at the maximum. There are two reasons for that-nya. One, if a Speed Inductor were to do that, they were originally inside the house, so he should have at least ran into an obstacle like the wall and that would have slowed them down, but they didn't, they completely skipped that and the second and more important thing, Johan was holding Judai-kun-nya."

Edo crossed his arms. "Why is that fact more vital?"

Judai answered this. "Speed Inductors cannot run if they're carrying or holding someone. While they might be running fast, the person they're holding is stationary and would not be able to cope so they are dragged down. And yes, they need to slow down if they come across obstacles. It's the same with teleportation, even if it was possible to do in the first place. But Johan violated all the rules and transported both me and him outside the house in such a short time. The most accurate way to describe what he did, given the appearance of portals, is—"

The Elementist pushed his glasses up. "—Dimension Crossing. Am I right, Judai-kun-nya?"

He didn't reply but the look on his face and the slow nod indicated affirmation.

Everybody was silent, as they let this sink into their minds.

Suddenly, the kitchen door flew open, and to everyone's surprise, Johan himself came ambling in the room, with an apprehensive look. "... Is everything that you said true?"

Jina came from behind him, fearful. "Uncle, I'm sorry. When Big Brother Johan woke up earlier, we told him to stay in bed while I went to tell you that he woke up just like you told me. But he insisted to know where everyone else was, and I said you were all here, and then he suddenly ran down here. I followed quickly, to find him shocked as he stood by the door. I think... he heard what everybody was talking about and..." She couldn't continue as Johan's expression answered for her.

Judai stood up with a serious look. "What did you hear?"

The bluenette looked to the side, forlorn. "When you said I could do magic. And everything else after that. And I couldn't take it anymore so I finally came in."

The Tamer looked at him. Johan knew the Dark Army was after him, he said that before all of this, back in his room. And he was still conscious when the leader mentioned that they would be after him as well. He heard what he needed to hear, the only thing he didn't know about.

"Why did you talk without me?"

The brunette looked stern but there was worry in his eyes. "You were sleeping and you needed to rest. You just used magic for the first time. And this was urgent."

Takuma turned to Jina, "Go up now. You kids need to rest."

She nodded timidly and left.

The old man turned to Johan, "Take a seat, Johan. You're part of this and I apologize in behalf of everyone for not including you."

"It's okay," he mumbled before taking a seat beside Edo. He didn't want to sit beside Judai now; his heart wouldn't be able to take it. "So I can do magic that doesn't need a card. Then I'm not a Card Summoner?"

The Elementist answered, "No, Johan-kun, you are a Card Summoner-nya."

"How come?" Mizuchi asked.

"Do you have a theory about this, Daitokuji-sensei?" Judai was also confused.

The black-haired man nodded. "He could be a Card Summoner, just not fitting the exact description of any of the five kinds that we know-nya. Based from what Judai-kun here said, I think his magic could be categorized as Card Summoning-nya. The first proof is his usage of Duel Energy. That is the official term for the magic energy of Card Summoners-nya. The second proof is how he used his magic: directly from his body-nya. It is reminiscent, though not exactly the same as one of the kinds of Card Summoner we know-nya. Have you heard of Fuser?" He asked with a smile.

"Fuser?" Edo repeated. He put a hand under his chin in a gesture of pondering. "That's one of the five kinds of Card Summoner. They are the combination of Inductor and Tamer. Card Summoners who fuse their bodies with a monster card, thus gaining its physical and magical abilities: that's their magic. It's also the rarest and most difficult to do of all the five. Is that right?"

Daitokuji looked impressed as he nodded. Johan turned to Edo, "How did you know all that?"

The silverette looked proud. "Hey, I'm a local teacher despite my age. I'm bound to know these things."

Judai blinked at this. "I don't get it. How could Johan be a Fuser? He doesn't have a card. Fusers absorb the monster card and when they're done, the card comes out of their bodies, similar to Inductors. Nothing like that happened to him."

"I didn't say he was a definite Fuser, only that he resembles one-nya. But like a Fuser, he uses non-physical magic that isn't an element from his body, right?" the teacher countered, still smiling. He raised a finger. "Think of it like this: instead of manually fusing with a monster card, Johan just activates the card inside his body-nya. Does that sound logical to you?"

The brunette gasped.

Daitokuji chuckled. "It is possible that Johan-kun doesn't have a card because it's permanently inside his body-nya. Permanent Fusion, you could say. When he activates it with Duel Energy, that's when he can use magic-nya. Very unusual, but within the bounds of Card Summoning description, don't you think?"

Everyone slowly nodded, a little lost but aware of the basic idea.

"The problem here is the identity of the monster card in Johan-kun's body-nya. If my theory is right, then we cannot possibly see the card of the monster. I have never heard of a monster that can cross dimensions. Not to mention, very powerful to remain inside a human body-nya. But it's also because of that reason that Johan-kun fainted earlier, the great magic is putting too much stress on his body-nya. I can't also explain how the card got into his body in the first place, or why it doesn't come out when he's not using magic."

Johan looked down uneasily, taking all this information in. After all, it would be surprising to suddenly find out that you're a magician. But a comforting hand landed on his shoulder and he looked to see Edo smiling at him. He smiled back.

Judai saw this and couldn't help glancing to the side, as he felt a bolt of jealousy in the pit of his stomach. Why? What should he be jealous of?

The magic teacher looked serious this time. "Like I said, it's just a theory, we can't be sure if that's exactly it but at least we have a plausible explanation for Johan-kun's ability-nya. Now, the matter of the Dark Army. They have directly stated that they'll be going after Johan-kun for his magic-nya. But they're ruthless and wouldn't hesitate to go after the people that Johan-kun cares about, like you all, his family."

The 'family' gasped, though Johan noted that Judai looked lost in memories sadly when his teacher said that.

"I know of a way to solve this, however-nya." Everyone snapped to attention to him at that. "Johan-kun isn't safe here, but what about if he went to school-nya?"

"School?" Johan echoed. "But I'm already finished." Education system in the kingdom stopped at fifteen years of age.

"Not at my school," Judai contradicted.

Edo was shocked when he realized what Judai meant. In local schools, the final grade was when a student was fifteen years of age. However, there was one school in the entire kingdom that took students fifteen years old and above. "You don't mean—"

The brunette nodded. "It's Duel Academia."

Johan gasped. Duel Academia was an exclusive and prestigious school. It was the only academy that taught Card Summoning, that's why it took teenage students. But he'd never dreamt he'd ever be going there.

Daitokuji-sensei smiled. "I'm a teacher there, and Judai-kun here is a third-year student. Since the academy is a boarding school, Johan-kun can stay there-nya. He could go on a scholarship, to cover any fees, so you don't need to pay. Our headmaster has set up a powerful barrier there, one the Dark Army cannot penetrate, so he will be safe there. What's more, we will be able to solve the mystery of his magic and he will be able to learn how to control it-nya. As for the people here, there can be an invisible barrier set up, and a magician on constant hidden patrol. I know it's difficult for you all but this is the safest route. What do you say?" He directed this to Takuma, as the head of the 'family'.

The man seemed uncertain. It was a decision that carried the future of everyone in the house, most especially Johan. If he agreed, that would mean Johan will leave, but he will be safer, and possibly learn about his ability. He looked at Johan, who was also looking at him worriedly. Then he said, "I have no problems about the barrier, but as for the matter of the school, that's up to Johan to decide. He can still stay here even with a barrier set up. He's no longer a child, and I believe that he has the right to decide for himself." He turned his gaze to Mizuchi for confirmation, to which she acquiesced.

Johan, meanwhile, couldn't believe what he just heard. Takuma-san was letting him decide? The gesture made him thankful that he was blessed by such a kind man for a foster parent. Now everyone's eyes were on him, waiting for his answer. He couldn't help squirming at the tension. He looked up, meeting Judai's eyes dead-on from across the table. The brown orbs were drowning in worry that left Johan in silent disbelief. Judai was concerned for him that much? Why?

Duel Academia huh? It was every kid's dream to go there. It was said to be a huge and grand place with dormitories for students. They taught the basic lessons like Language and History in local schools but the Academia also taught more advanced topics on those. But the best part about it was Card Summoning magic training. If he was a Card Summoner, then it was only right that he go there. And wasn't Judai a student there? Then they could spend time— No, no, no. That shouldn't be the reason for him to go to school. Judai being a student there shouldn't be the real reason for him to go; it was only an assurance that he won't enter a complete stranger in the place, right? He'd be comforted with the knowledge that he at least knew some_one_ there. The real reason was to learn magic and to stay away from the Dark Army, he convinced himself.

He'd miss everyone at the orphanage but it was safer like this and deep inside, he really wanted to learn about his ability.

He came to a conclusion.

With determined eyes, he faced the man who was like a father to him for nine years.

"I'm going."

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He'd barely had any sleep before the sunlight began filtering in from the windows.

Johan rubbed his eyes as he sat up on his bed. It was a new day. Somehow, the talk during the dawn felt like a dream, but when he saw the brunette sleeping beside him on his bed, he was convinced it wasn't.

After he'd announced his decision, there was only a short talk from Daitokuji that they had to leave as soon as possible, so the three of them were going to leave when the sun was up.

Judai was sleeping beside him again; he didn't have the energy to argue about that. The magic teacher slept on the couch downstairs with his cat, while everyone else slept in their usual rooms. For some reason, he didn't feel like going back to bed, so he crept out carefully, so as not to disturb his bed mate. He strode over to the small table in his room, where his flute was placed. He was feeling a little restless, and whenever he did, he'd play to calm his nerves. If it worked on other people, it applied to him too. He took the flute and left the room, closing the door as noiselessly as possible.

He went down the stairs quietly. The Elementist was sleeping peacefully on the couch, his pet cat Pharaoh lying on his chest. Johan smiled briefly at the sight before tiptoeing out the door and into the mini-garden in front of the house. The plants looked as lush as ever, dew still present in the leaves. The sun wasn't that high up yet so it wasn't hot, just a warm morning. Johan took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh air. It felt so good. Then he wondered if he could still do this when he went to Duel Academia.

That thought just reminded him of the upcoming journey. He'd never left Ruby Village before. What was it like in other towns and cities?

All this worrying was just making him more fidgety. Taking another deep breath, he brought his flute to his lips and positioned his fingers. He slowly closed his eyes and began playing a slow, gentle melody. He didn't want to play loudly because it would wake up the people in the house.

_-When the darkness makes you weep-_

The Dark Army was a group of evil magicians who wanted to exploit his powers.

_-When your worries strike your heart so deep-_

There would be danger in the future, he knew. But that was the consequence of his newfound ability.

_-Do not look down and do not sigh-_

There was no perfect explanation to his power. That's why he had to go, to learn and control it.

_-Look up to the sky and hold your head up high-_

But I'm not alone, he thought. There will be someone with me.

_-In a backdrop of clear blue, you can see-_

He still had no idea about the strange feeling he felt when the other was near him.

_-A beautiful sight that will give you glee-_

Nor did he know why he cared so much, why he didn't want the other to die, why he felt warmth in those brown orbs.

_-Smile as the gentle winds caress your soul and blow-_

But he was just happy. It was enough for now.

_-Let hope fill your heart, the blessing of the rainbow-_

Judai.

He stopped and lowered his hands, and felt himself smiling. His heart now felt lighter, as if something heavy was just removed from it. A warm sensation was spreading throughout his body.

"That was beautiful," someone from behind him spoke up.

He turned around, recognizing that voice. He must have been so absorbed in the music, because he didn't hear the other person arrive.

"Judai..."

The brunette was smiling sincerely. "I didn't know you could play. But it was really beautiful. And soothing, too."

He felt his own smile grow wider. "Thank you. But did it wake you up? Sorry."

Judai shook his head. "No. I woke up shortly after you did; I caught you going out the door. Do you play often?"

"I play at the local bar as work. But I sometimes do it for fun and to calm myself, when I feel troubled. Like now."

He tilted his head a little with a small frown. "So you're worried about going away?"

Johan ran a hand through his hair as he looked pointedly to the side. "Well, it's... I've never left Ruby Village before. I don't know much about the world out there. And now, I'm facing it as a magician, not as an ordinary person. I can't deny that I'm nervous, and a little scared about the Dark Army. As for my powers, I don't know what it is, and I'm not sure if I should be afraid of it or not. For now, I'm happy that I have it because it saved you last night. But in the future, what if it's something that can destroy? Or hurt others? I think of stupid things like that so I couldn't sleep."

Then, he lifted his head up, eyes shining with pure happiness as he looked contentedly at Judai. "But... all I can do is to face it with a smile like I always do."

The morning breeze blew past, carrying the scent of dew-decorated flowers, and Judai felt his hair and clothes sway with the wind, as his heart felt so... glad. Edo's words came back to his mind. _'That idiot never thinks of his own happiness, you know.'_

And yet, to see him smiling so happily now...

He indulged in the tender feeling for a while before he spoke up. "Yeah, just keep smiling, Johan. Because I promise you..."

Judai smiled his warmest smile to Johan.

"...I'll protect you."

**To be continued...**

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Chapter Notes:

-Finally, all orphans are introduced!

1) Jina- She appeared in the Dark World arc with her father and younger brother. They're villagers in the human world who got into a portal similarly to the one Judai and friends entered, enabling them to go to the Dark World. In the series, she is much older, in her teens or so, but for this fic I made her around 9 years old.

2) Kyle- He is Jina's younger brother in the series, a fact which I kept in this story.

-The Five Kinds of Card Summoners are all based on the Yu-gi-oh card game itself. I'll delve into them more in the latter chapters but as to how I got the idea for them:

1) Tamer- From the basic rule of Duel Monsters: summoning monsters.

2) Equipper- Based on the Equip spell cards, like Sparkman's Spark Gun.

3) Inductor- From Equip spell cards also, but more of the ones that raise ATK or DEF, instead of providing the monster a weapon, like Judai's Neos Force.

4) Elementist- Most magic shows make use of the elements, this one is no different.

5) Fuser- Based on Judai and Yubel

-Daitokuji's Helios Flames: I based it on one of his monsters: the Primeval Helios.

-The flute song/poem: I made that up. xD While I got the general idea and I could have made it free verse, it was fun to make it rhyme.

Well, the plot looks more understandable now. The end of the chapter was slightly cheesy with the song and all, but Judai's promise is actually one of the most important pillars of this story.

As for the type of magic they use, what do you think of it? Some of the other characters like Shou and the gang will appear later. Have fun guessing what type of magician they are? xD

Also, do you now know why this fic is entitled Fusion Hearts? xD

The next chapter might come a little later than usual, around June 2, or so. I've just bought Pokemon SoulSilver, and I'll be playing my way into the dawn, so I won't be staying much in front of my laptop for a while. Hahaha!

Review if you please. All comments and suggestions are appreciated.

~Rine-Line


	3. Reverse Fuser

Yay, third chapter!

After spending 41+ gameplay hours, I am finally able to tear myself away from my DS and my SoulSilver! xD Here is the next chapter of Fusion Hearts. And it's a whopping 20 or so pages again.

I hope you enjoy!

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**Fusion Hearts**

**Chapter 3: Reverse Fuser**

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"Johan dear, are you sure you didn't forget anything?"

The bluenette never knew that Mizuchi could be like a motherhen. Actually, scratch that—everyone in the orphanage, although Edo did a good job of concealing his worry. He only had a few clothes and didn't have any possessions in particular besides his flute, anyway.

Soon enough, it was time for him to go and everyone in the orphanage stood in front of the door. The three magicians were already outside. Daitokuji and Pharaoh were farther out, while Johan was being given final hugs by his 'family', as Judai stood a short distance behind him.

"Take care and make sure you keep yourself healthy," Takuma advised.

Tom sniffed, "I'll miss you, Big Brother Johan!"

"Don't forget about us!" Nero added.

Rick looked excited. "When you come back, tell us about Duel Academia and all your adventures, okay?"

Johan laughed. "I will, I promise."

Edo was frowning, perhaps still thinking if he should be emotional about this or say something sarcastic that is in actuality comforting (in which he is a certified expert). In the end, he settled with huffing, then, "Don't do anything stupid."

The newbie magician caught the comfort in that statement, but still couldn't help feeling sad. "Sure."

Then Edo chuckled and pushed him lightly towards a certain brunette, making his face suddenly turn red. Judai caught him by the shoulders, confused. "Come back when this is all over."

Johan's face was still light scarlet, but the genuine smile on Edo's face made him forget the earlier stunt for a moment. "I'll definitely come back."

Then he smiled, although an eyebrow was twitching. "So don't turn my room into your library."

"I'm not promising anything."

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It was completely different from a walk around town, that Johan knew, but for some reason he didn't feel nervous. Rather, he was excited, barely able to keep his feet from skipping in joy like a child on an adventure. Which, in a way, is what he was.

The three magicians were currently on the road towards the capital, Sapphire City, where Duel Academia was located. The path they were taking was flanked by a forest on both sides, although the ground was obviously flattened and maintained by human construction. Judai and Johan walked ahead beside each other, while Daitokuji and Pharaoh trailed a little further behind. They were going at a regular pace, since they weren't in any particular hurry, although the sun beating down made them move a little bit faster than normal. They were set to arrive an hour or so after noon.

The two teens were chatting casually as they traversed the lonely path, the brunette describing the city and the school to Johan.

"It's a very big campus! The dorms are in a separate building to the academy itself but they're really close, ten to fifteen minutes if you're running. Also there's a huge arena inside, it's for magic training."

Johan would nod and smile, sometimes adding an exclamation of awe, to which Judai would grin in return. The teacher just let the two of them go on with their talk, actually happy at the way Judai is acting. _'He seems to have bonded so quickly with Johan-kun-nya...'_

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Sapphire City- the capital of the Rainbow Kingdom. It is the largest of all seven towns, as well as the only city among them. Being the capital meant it had the most number of people living, and also contained the stronghold of the leader and king, Prism Castle. There are many big houses and rent room buildings, as mostly rich people and magicians live in the place. It had a huge market and a lovely park.

Beyond the castle was a huge mountain, and there was a temple on top. It was considered sacred, dedicated to their god and nobody was allowed to enter.

However, one of the highlights of the city was the huge building to the east, covering a vast amount of land, which equalled at least half of the entire city. This was the famous boarding school for magicians-in-training of Card Summoning, Duel Academia.

Johan nearly dropped his jaw in amazement as he stood before the majestic academy. It was indeed more stunning up close than the rumours say. There was a short path leading directly to its huge wooden doors, trees and shrubs making the area surrounding the path and around the school itself green with life. The building walls were painted a whitish-gray, the roof a dark brown, the glass windows stained with red, yellow and blue.

Judai chuckled. "Welcome to Duel Academia."

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Thanks to the school building itself being huge, the three dorm houses behind it were barely seen from up front. They were all similar in size and structure and would have been mistaken for triplet towers, had they not been distinguishable by the colour of their roofs. The leftmost was red, the middle a sunny yellow, and the other end a royal blue. But they could not be accessed unless one entered the school itself first. When the three travellers entered through the double oak doors that seemed to open on their own accord, there was a carpeted hallway that ended directly on another door, similar to the one they just entered through. There was a set of stairs on the left, another on the right.

As soon as they entered, Daitokuji turned to Judai, "You have detention for your little escapade, Judai-kun, and I hope you haven't forgotten that-nya." His tone was slightly teasing.

Judai gave an 'Eep!' before turning to the teacher with a nervous smile, "A-ah, is that so? I don't mind but can I ask for a favour?"

"What-nya?"

The brunette grinned. "Can I do it later? I want to show Johan around!" With that, he latched himself onto Johan's arm, much to the teal-haired teen's surprise. "Eh?"

The Elementist laughed heartily. "All right then, go ahead-nya. I'll need to talk with the headmaster, anyway. Come by my office later, so I can tell you his room assignment, as well as your detention-nya."

"Thanks, sensei!" Judai shouted before running with Johan towards the stairs (although it was more accurate to say that he was _dragging_ Johan...).

"Hey, wait... Slow down, Judai!"

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Classrooms were large, no exaggeration for an academy that was really big in itself. It would be more correct to call them a hall, rather than a normal student classroom. There was a huge board up front, a table in front for the professor, while the students' seats were similar to a seating arrangement of a Roman conference.

In one of these classrooms, there is a blonde teacher, his hair in a ponytail, dressed in a frilly blue and pink suit. He was seated on a chair in front of his table, letting the students copy the notes in the blackboard. There was only peaceful silence in the room, accentuated by the light scratching of pen against paper, and whispers from teens unable to keep their mouths shut.

But it didn't last for long, because the door was suddenly thrown open by such a strong force it nearly fell off its hinges. Judai came in, still holding Johan's arm, with a smile on his face. Johan was still outside the door, though.

At first, everyone was surprised by the booming door, but the reason changed when they saw the expression on the brunette's face.

'_Holy shit, Judai is SMILING!'_

'_Am I seeing things?'_

'_Is this a dream?'_

'_Did something happen that finally got him out of his room?'_

'_He's no longer emo?'_

"S-Signor Judai!" The teacher in front stuttered.

"Chronos-sensei!" Judai yelled back. "Sorry I've skipped class for weeks! I've got detention too but I'll be back soon! In the meantime, I'm showing this new guy around!" At that, he pulled a flustered Johan inside the room. "We'll be attending class once he's got everything sorted! Bye!"

And as fast as he came barging in, Judai, along with Johan, left the room and slammed the door behind.

The aftermath of that was a thoroughly shocked Card Summoning teacher, and scared, flabbergasted and disbelieving students.

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Johan didn't know if he should be afraid or happy about the way Judai was acting. It was like the brunette was hyper, high on sugar and excited. While he was glad Judai was taking the time to show him around, Judai's energy was slightly overwhelming.

Ah well, it was for his own good anyway. With his lack of sense of direction, he'd be lost and wandering in the spacious corridors in one minute flat.

Besides, it made him happy to see Judai smiling. It suited the Tamer better than those regretful brown orbs he saw back in the orphanage when Daitokuji mentioned the cruelty of the Dark Army.

With a momentary dread in his heart, he wondered what happened that made Judai look like that.

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Duel Academia had a five-year education system. For the first two years, it was advanced lectures on Language, Nature, Arithmetic, Arts and Music, History and Physical Training. Those six subjects were already taught in the local schools in other towns but the quality of education in the Academia was higher and better. When students are in third year, they are only focused in Card Summoning magic training, up till their fifth year.

Card Summoning classes were divided in two, lecture, which is classroom instruction, and practical, involving actual use of the magic. Before the start of their third year, students need to decide on what kind of Card Summoning they wanted to specialize in, and that would be their only course for the year. For the fourth year and fifth year, they have two choices: They could either continue to train and master the course they took the previous year, or if they're very skilled and smart, they can study another course, effectively being able to do two kinds of Card Summoning. But because that was extremely difficult, only a select few did that.

Johan had seen mostly the whole campus, with Judai being a helpful and bouncy tour guide, it was hard not to. He could at least recognize important rooms and places, like the cafeteria.

Right about now, Judai and Johan passed by a mini-arena, one of the many in the school, and watched on the balcony one level above the field as two students are squaring off in Card Summoning. Both of them were surrounded by yellowish-orange energy before shouting, **"Duel!"**

The aura died down, and one of them, wearing a yellow jacket similar to Judai's red one, took out a card from his belt case. Johan saw that the box looked the same to the one on Judai's waist. _'Maybe it's the official card case.' _The guy put the card over his sword and shouted, **"Equip Magic, Activate!" **

The card melded into the weapon, and it turned a reddish colour and the blade became longer. His opponent, who was not wearing a coloured jacket that appeared to be the Academia's uniform, merely whistled. The calm teen tipped his cowboy hat slightly upwards before taking his card out. **"Summon, Skullpawn!"**

A monster made out of grey bone armour replaced the card after a flash of light. Its weapon was a white trident and it had red claws, along with sharp teeth.

'_Tamer versus Equipper...' _Johan watched in interest as he leaned on the railing. Judai did the same beside him, sending an unnoticed smile at the bluenette. After all, this was his first time watching a Card Duel in a situation that did not involve life and death, and more like the game that Duel Academia students treated it as.

The yellow-clad boy gave a cry as he lunged at the monster bravely, sword raised high. The bone creature fought back with its three-pronged weapon, making the two fighters clash with a clang of metal. After a minute of stalemate, both backed away a few paces before starting again. Meanwhile, the Tamer, who had bandages covering his right eye, watched, observant and composed.

"Isn't that unfair?" Johan suddenly asked.

Judai turned to him. "What is?"

"Well, the Tamer's just standing off at the side, while the other guy is fighting by himself. Won't he get tired first?"

The brunette chuckled. Johan really did have a lot to learn about Card Summoning. "It's not like that. It might seem like that at first glance but to be honest, the two guys are on equal grounds."

"How so?"

"The Tamer may be just standing there but even like that, he's continuously providing Duel Energy to the monster he summoned. And that's not a small amount; after all, monsters live in a separate world. You'd need a lot of Duel Energy to summon it in the first place, and more to maintain its existence. Equippers don't need much energy; it goes to the weapon anyway and that's not a living thing. If the Tamer runs out of energy, the other guy is free to slash him with that sword."

Johan's mouth formed an 'o', amazed.

"Well, that's how Daitokuji-sensei would put it! Minus the nya, of course."

And with that, both of them laughed.

"I'm not one of the smart students, you know. But I was able to answer that more or less, because I'm a Tamer too. It's what I experience when I use magic."

Johan looked back at the match with glassy eyes. "Card Summoning is really deep, huh? I guess I've got a lot to learn."

Suddenly, there was a cry from the arena, as the boy's sword was knocked out of his hand by a well-placed strike from Skullpawn. The monster then pointed its trident toward the defenseless boy's throat, in a gesture of 'I win'. There was cheering from the students seated on the stands directly across Johan and Judai. And because the Tamer in the arena didn't look tired one bit, it meant he was strong to have lots of Duel Energy. Skullpawn turned back into a card, and the cowboy caught it in the air in a display of coolness as it came back to him.

The two shook hands in the middle of the arena before leaving out the door on the side of the field. A minute later, they were out into the balcony, coming out through a staircase. Johan vaguely heard some shouting from the class he supposed were sitting on the platforms.

"Amazing as always, Jim!"

"Nothing less from a Champ like Jim!"

"Haha, Kagurazaka got owned!"

"You were completely PAWNed, man!"

"Hahahahaha!"

"Shut up!"

Johan then looked down at the dueling grounds again, as two new students prepared to face off. Both signaled the start with a shout of 'Duel!' before both took out cards and called forth respective monsters.

'_This time, they're both Tamers…' _That was interesting to see too. Even if he counted the time back at Ruby Village, this would be the first time for him to see a duel between two similar Card Summoners. How did Duels go if both used the same kind of magic?

The battle, as it turned out, was one of endurance. The two Tamers kept summoning monsters, trying to overwhelm the other. Of course, if what Judai said was followed, that was a heavy toll on their Duel Energy. That meant that those who wanted to be Tamers needed to have a huge amount of Duel Energy. So, all the kinds of Card Summoners had their own strengths and weaknesses. Johan found it amusing that he was already having a 'class' and 'lesson' by just watching a practical duel.

But something made him curious while watching the two Tamers go at it. "Why do they just summon new monsters over and over? Wouldn't it be better to just fuse those who have already been called?" He recalled how Judai did that with Neos and Flare Scarab.

At that, Judai looked surprised before he laughed nervously. "Um, that's not possible, Johan. Because... Um, you see—"

"—Tamers can't fuse their monsters," a new voice cut in.

The two teens automatically turned to the source of that soft voice. It was a student, obviously older than them, around his final year at the most. His school jacket was white and blue. He had seaweed green hair that fell to his shoulders and light violet eyes that spoke of intelligence. His hands were tucked in the side pockets of his pants. "You asking a question like that could only mean you are a new student, one with only the basic knowledge of Card Summoning. But you're not a first year, given your physical characteristics. You're probably around sixteen or seventeen. Furthermore, the first magician you saw is Yuki Judai-kun, also known as Fusion Tamer, judging by the meaning of question, and considering that the two of you are here together... all this only means you are the one I'm looking for: Johan Andersen. Am I right?" He said this all in monotone, and like it was the simplest thing in the world.

Said boy in question was blinking in disbelief at what the new guy just said. How did he figure that out? Though at first the bit about him and Judai 'being together' made him flush red, he shook it off when he asked back. "How did you know my name? And um... Everything else. You're kind of hard to follow..." Johan asked, slightly embarrassed.

Judai merely tilted his head, perhaps used to this and was familiar with the teen. "Fujiwara?"

"That I am." He shrugged nonchalantly. "I came here for you two. It's lucky for me that you two are in the same place. It saved me time having to look for you separately. Anyway... You two don't need to go to Daitokuji-sensei's office or even the Headmaster's office anymore. The orders were passed to me." He took out a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Judai. "Your detention."

The brunette took the paper and scanned what was written. Then his eyes bulged. "No way!" Johan tried to peek at the paper but Judai quickly got it out of his line of sight. He pouted.

Fujiwara raised an eyebrow. "Daitokuji-sensei made that. Don't tell me you'd rather have _Cobra-sensei_ give you detention?"

The mention of the new name had an immediate effect on the Tamer: fear. "No, no, no, anyone but him!" He all but pleaded to the high heavens.

The older teen sighed. Johan was confused, unable to follow. Who the heck was Cobra? Was he that scary to make Judai actually beg for him to not be the one to give detention?

"Then accept that one. Though I have to admit, Daitokuji-sensei always gives _creative _punishments. Have fun, Judai-kun." For someone who'd been talking in monotone before, he actually had a small smile on his face.

"Oh, great."

Fujiwara then turned to Johan. "I also came to fetch you."

"Why?"

The green-haired teen's answer was simple. "Dorm mate."

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Fujiwara and Johan went inside the blue-roofed dorm and climbed up the stairs to the third floor. Then they went through a long hallway until they arrived at a door to the end of it. It was perfectly safe to say that if the older teen wasn't with him, Johan would have never made it in front of the room. The downside of having no sense of direction. (He has yet to find an upside, unfortunately.)

The room was spacious enough to fit more than two but the way it looked at the moment showed that even two would have difficulty living there.

The dorm room looked more like a library than anything. Books of all sizes and thickness were piled up like towers in almost every possible corner, sheets of paper were strewn everywhere, and some random pens were rolled out on the floor. There was a shelf but it was almost drained of its supposed contents. It was nigh impossible to walk across the room and not step on anything that can be considered school supplies.

Fujiwara sighed while Johan looked dumbstruck. "This is why I wasn't too keen on getting a dorm mate."

With much grace, Fujiwara strolled into the room, amazingly avoiding stepping on any paraphernalia. How the hell he could tell and find space to put his foot in between all the reading materials was unknown and a miracle. He looked used to doing it and more like he did it every day. (Which he probably did.)

"Unluckily for us I'm not a Wind Elementist. But I can fix this mess in a slightly similar way." The older teen stood in the middle of the room, facing Johan who was stuck in the doorway. He took out a card from his chest pocket.

Johan wondered, didn't the others take theirs from a case on their belts? Why did this guy have his in a different place?

Duel Energy surrounded him as he quietly said, **"Duel." **Then Johan gasped as he placed the card over his chest. **"Card Fusion, Activate!" **

Light surrounded him briefly before it disappeared along with the card, only for Johan to see a pair of angel wings on Fujiwara's back. He lightly flapped them as his eyes glowed blue, and that seemed to activate a special magical force that began arranging the books in the room, much like how Johan remembered Daitokuji fix the destruction of the battle in the orphanage. When the magic had done its work, the room was clean, the books lined up neatly in the shelf and the pens and papers placed neatly on the desk.

It was like magic. Oh wait, it was.

Fujiwara's body glowed again as the wings disappeared and a shining card slowly came out of his chest, where his heart was supposed to be. He took it gently and the light disintegrated. Then he looked up to Johan still standing by the door, jaw dropped at the magnificent display of unusual Card Summoning.

"So... By the way you're shocked like that... I take it that it's your first time seeing a Fuser in action."

"Fuser?" Was all Johan could honestly say.

"I'm Fujiwara Yusuke, Duel Academia's only Fuser. Although if Daitokuji-sensei's theory is right, then I'm no longer the only Fuser here." He said coolly as he pocketed his card.

"Huh?"

"That's the reason I was assigned as your dorm mate, even though I am two years older than you. Most people who share a dorm are of the same year or of the same kind of Card Summoner, you know." He extended a hand in greeting as he strode over to Johan. "Like I said, my name is Fujiwara Yusuke. Fifth-year student. Call me Fujiwara."

"Um... Nice to meet you." Johan accepted the handshake with a smile.

He gave a small smile in return as he broke the hand contact. "This room is now much as yours as it is mine, so don't spend the whole day by the doorway." He turned and sat by the bed on the right.

Johan blinked and realized where he was. Still standing outside. Oops. He quickly went in and sat on the other bed across Fujiwara.

"Now that we're nicely settled here, it's time for me to start the new research assigned to me, and also tell you why you're here."

"Research?" Johan repeated.

Fujiwara gestured to the books on the shelf. "The reason this room gets into a mess of books often is because I investigate so-called special cases in the Duel Academia. I don't mean to be arrogant but it's the benefit of being the school genius. I used to only have one, but with your arrival, I now have two."

"I'm a special case? Does it have anything to do with my magic?" Johan asked as he leaned on the wall.

"Yes, it does. Daitokuji-sensei told me about his theory. But then, it is a theory, and he himself knew of the holes in it. So the investigation was passed to me. I don't mind though, I have nothing else to occupy my time with, anyway. So, the question is, are you a Fuser or not? Or even, are you a Card Summoning magician in the first place?"

Johan pondered. Was he really a Card Summoner? Thinking of the magic, he suddenly remembered what Fujiwara said when he interrupted what Judai was going to say earlier. "Wait a minute, about earlier... You said that Tamers can't fuse monsters, but Judai could!"

"He is my other case," Fujiwara countered with a slight tilt of his head. "I meant what I said, ordinary Tamers can't. He knew that as well, and that was what he was about to tell you before I answered for him. But for some currently unknown reason, when he chose the Tamer course at the start of his third year, and ever since then, Judai-kun was able to fuse his monsters. No one else is able to do that. I don't have a gauge of what you already know about Card Summoners, so I'll tell you anyway. Tamers require lots of Duel Energy to summon monsters, who live in a different world. Cards can be considered their 'gate' to this world, and the Tamers and their energy are the keys to open that. Besides being the key, Tamers maintain the life of their monsters. Those two actions require a substantial amount of Duel Energy."

He crossed his arms. "But Judai-kun can perform another spell that he calls Fusion, involving those monsters. Being a spell, that's just more Duel Energy out of him. You'd think he should be so weak by that time, but he isn't. It's almost like he has a never-ending supply of energy and that makes him so powerful. He can call out three to four monsters, and fuse two of them to call out an even stronger monster while still standing and not falling over in exhaustion. That's why he's being targeted."

Johan felt a chill run through him as he remembered the night of the battle. _Judai being pressured and nearly killed... Destruction and cruelty... The ominous parting words the lead attacker left..._ He unintentionally curled up on the bed in the assault of memories in his mind.

The older teen saw this, serious purple eyes scrutinizing his form. "So they're after you too, huh? Ironic, that both my cases are chased by the Dark Army."

Surprised yet sad eyes looked up. "Does everyone know that Judai is being pursued by them?"

"At first, no. But after a certain incident, everyone did," Fujiwara replied calmly. Johan was about to ask about what that was when he was interrupted. "That's not the issue here so we'll set aside this topic for a later time. Let's focus on you and your mysterious powers, which seemed to attract the attention of the Dark Army, according to Daitokuji-sensei. I'll give you a quick test, to check if the theory is partially right, at least."

Johan nodded, despite his curiosity nagging at him to find out about that incident.

"Close your eyes and count to ten. Then open your eyes, and tell me if you can see anything different from normal in the room."

The bluenette did as he was told. He mentally counted.

_One... Two..._

He let out a deep breath to calm himself. What was going to happen? Would that involve him using his powers he didn't know how to activate or use in the first place?

_...Nine...Ten! _

Peridot orbs slowly opened then blinked a few times to adjust the blurry vision. Once he was able to see clearly, Johan didn't need to look around the room. For there, directly in front of him, was the supposed 'change' in the room. Fujiwara didn't do a Houdini and hid under his bed as a joke (He didn't seem like the type to do something ridiculous like that, anyway). In fact, he was still seated there on his bed like how Johan saw him before he closed his eyes. Only this time, standing beside him was an orange-haired man with wings in spirit form.

"Waaaah!" Johan shouted, as he backed even further against the wall he was originally leaning on. "An angel?"

Fujiwara merely raised an eyebrow in slight surprise. "So you can see Honest in spirit form? Excellent. This proves you are a Fuser, in any case, perhaps with just special conditions."

"E-eh?"

The Fuser gestured to his companion. "This is Honest. He's the one I fuse with. Recognize the wings?"

Johan studied the spirit more closely. True to what the teen said, those wings were the same as the one that appeared on his back when he used his magic earlier. The angel had a muscular yet kind and protective appearance, as befitting his role. "Yes, I do. But what do you mean by me being able to see him makes me a Fuser?"

Fujiwara seemed to ponder for a while before saying, "Well, for you to have a clear view of this, I'll describe all five kinds of Card Summoners to you, even though you'll be learning it in even more detail in Lecture class. You listen well, got it?"

The teal-haired teen nodded.

"First, Tamers. You probably know a lot about them already, since the first magician you met is a Tamer, and I've told you a lot a while ago. They are the most straightforward, calling for a monster from the 'gate' cards. Monsters fight for them, in exchange for providing Duel Energy. The more powerful the monster, the harder it is to control and more energy is needed to make it exist outside. When they're done fighting, the monsters will turn back into a card until their Tamer summons for them again. While this seems to be the safest kind of Card Summoner since they don't do any actual fighting themselves, it is dangerous as well. Monsters can run rampant if the Tamer has no experience controlling them. So Tamers can only keep 6-7 monsters at most. And I repeat, normal Tamers can't and don't, fuse monsters. Yuki Judai is, obviously, an anomaly."

"Next is Equipper. They specialize in weapons mixed with magic. They 'equip' their weapon, usually swords or spears, with a magic card that improves its quality, hence the name. They usually improve sharpness, strength or the material composition. Of course, they need to be skilled with the weapon without magic first, so there's some physical training mixed with it. Many students prefer to be Equippers, since it's the easiest to do. What's more, they can transform any object into a weapon, like an ordinary pole into a sharp spear, but then that would require more Duel Energy, which isn't practical and used only during emergencies. After all, it's easier to sharpen something that is already a weapon, than completely change or transform something that isn't, right?"

"Inductors are the most similar to Equippers. But rather than put cards on weapons, they put magic on their bodies instead, enhancing their physical ability. That makes Inductors more close combat-oriented than any other magician. This means that aside from draining Duel Energy, they also spend their body stamina. Which is why, Inductors need to learn how to balance their energy or else they collapse. The augmentation they do is usually for physical power, or speed and agility."

"The fourth kind is Elementist. The magic in their cards takes the form of an attack or defense using any of the six Elements: Fire, Earth, Wind, Water, Ice and Electricity. They use the power of the Elements to fight or defend. Most Elementists specialize in just one Element, because then they would be able to master it completely. But there are some skilled magicians who can use more than one Element. It's very hard to do though, because these are the Elements, after all, it's hard to condense and control them into an attack."

"And finally, the rarest of them all, is Fuser. These Card Summoners are a combination of Tamer and Inductor, in the sense that they absorb the cards in their bodies; it's only that, Fusers instead use a monster card. They would then gain that monster's physical and magical ability. Because this is basically merging with another living being, it's extremely hard to do, and takes years to master. This requires a very strong bond between the Fuser and the monster. Card Fusion does consume quite a lot of energy, though not as much as Tamers do. A Fuser can only fuse with one monster. The Fuser's monster does not need to return to the other realm, and can stay in this world as a spirit. That's their difference to the monsters summoned by Tamers. And most importantly, and the reason I started this talk to begin with..."

Fujiwara glanced at Johan with a light smirk. "... Fusers can see monster spirits."

Johan gasped. So the fact that he could see Honest means, like Fujiwara said earlier...

"It appears there is some truth to Daitokuji-sensei's theory, after all. Still, for a Fuser, you are certainly weird. You really don't have a card?" He asked with a curious glance.

The bluenette shook his head.

"So that's why he theorized that the card is inside your body. Plausible." Fujiwara looked immersed in his thoughts. "Dimension Crossing is very intriguing, but it's unheard of, so even I cannot identify whoever or whatever it is you fused with..."

Honest slowly disappeared into the air, sensing that there was no more need for him to stay as a spirit, and preferred remaining invisible.

Johan watched as the older teen mumbled to himself about his thoughts. For some reason, the sight reminded him so much of Edo when he was studying or thinking about something related to the lessons he was teaching at the local village school. The silverette was, after all, a genius like Fujiwara. This only reminded him of home, and with a pang of homesickness he wondered how everybody was doing back at the orphanage, and if they were safe. And also the Carbuncle Bar, the manager and the regular customers were sure to miss his flute-playing. Maybe because of Fujiwara's similarity to Edo, Johan didn't feel uncomfortable talking to him, even if this was the first time they met. He'd usually be a little tense around new people. Judai was the first exception to that.

His trip down memory lane was interrupted by Fujiwara asking, "How did you activate your Duel Energy?"

"Activate?" Johan repeated, confused.

"Judai's story said that you were surrounded by Duel Energy without saying any spell. How did you do that?"

"Umm..." Johan rubbed his head, trying hard to recall, even though it was resurfacing memories he didn't want to remember at the moment. "Well, there was suddenly a voice speaking in my head. I don't know where it came from, but it was a powerful voice. It asked me why I wasn't starting the duel. I was confused and repeated the word duel in my mental voice, which strangely sounded like it mixed with that other voice. And that's when I felt some sort of energy flowing in me. And after that, I think that's when I was able to do magic."

Violet eyes widened slightly at that, yet Fujiwara's tone remained soft. "Really? Then that means there really is a card inside your body, since you used the correct way to activate Duel Energy, unconventional as it is. You still said the activation word, 'Duel', even if it was your mental voice. But I do wonder why the card won't come out. Does it not want its identity to be known perhaps?"

Johan only frowned, unsure. If a genius can't get it, then all the more he could not.

"Does the voice seem threatening?"

The bluenette froze. What? Was his power dangerous, after all? But if he were to answer Fujiwara's question... "Um, no. The voice was mighty, but it didn't feel evil."

"If it's as you say, then there should be no worry. It's definitely not a monster with malicious intent. Shy it may be, but not dangerous, in the least. Well, it's not like your ability can harm others anyway, despite its uniqueness."

Fujiwara had a point, Johan thought. Crossing dimensions wouldn't do any physical or magical damage, unlike the other Card Summoners or monsters. Well, that suited him just fine, harming other people was not on his to-do list, nor will it ever be.

Then the fifth-year student chuckled lightly. "It's very ironic that we're the only two Fusers in this school and yet our powers seem different from each other. As for me, I needed to strengthen my bond with Honest for nearly a year before I was able to fuse with him. But you're the opposite. You are already connected to your monster card and most likely, the more you use your magic, the more you will be able to know who it is. I think the title 'Reverse Fuser' suits you."

"Reverse Fuser? Title? Is that a common thing around here?"

"Yes, it is. Students like to think up of names like that. Especially on those who are considered idols because of strength, or those with special abilities. I said earlier that Judai-kun is also known as 'Fusion Tamer', did I not?"

The teal-haired teen turned a little red. He didn't think he could be considered famous in a school he just entered. _'Not to mention Judai is too...'_

"Anyway, about your power... You create gemstone-shaped portals, right?" A nod of affirmation. "Can you control where they open and lead to?"

Johan shook his head. "No, but since I've only done it once... I guess not really. I don't have any sense of direction, so I guess that applies to travelling through dimensions too."

"Hmm..." Fujiwara was thinking deeply. Johan watched him as the minutes ticked by, trying to guess what he was thinking about (in which he is unsuccessful, after all, how were you supposed to discern the inner workings of a genius mind?). When it appeared like he had come to a decision, he spoke up, "Since your powers fall into the category of Fuser, you need training to control your ability. Seeing as there is no professor who is a Fuser here, I'll be your de facto mentor. I'm authorized to do that, since by helping you control your powers, I would also be able to solve the mystery of your ability, as per the case assigned to me. You'll be attending the Lectures like the other students, since it is a general class, but you'll have practical with me. Any questions?"

The bluenette blinked. "Not really." He didn't really mind, Fujiwara seemed like a nice person, if not too analytical sometimes that made Johan's mind boggled much like Edo in his long lectures (usually inserted with sarcasm).

"Then, do your best, Reverse Fuser."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Judai looked like hell.

There was just no other way to accurately describe his current appearance, when Johan opened the door of the dorm room for him when he knocked (actually, banged) on it. His brown hair was a mess, like his uniform. But he was still smiling, even if it's a small one, and appeared genuinely happy to see Johan.

"I didn't really know where Fujiwara's room was so I had to ask the receptionist downstairs."

"... Um, what happened to you?"

Judai blinked then laughed nervously. "Oh, this? Uh, it's the result of my detention from Daitokuji-sensei. You know, I'm considering taking Cobra-sensei's detention next time instead. At least he only makes students run laps around the school."

Run around the campus? But the place was so huge, it was practically an island. And to run _laps _around it? That was suicide! But Johan didn't want to question the other's logic. Or insanity.

So instead he asked, "What brings you here, Judai?"

"Huh?" Then the brunette began rubbing the back of his head. "You see... I was wondering if you've had dinner already."

Johan shook his head. "Not yet, why?" Because it was crazy for him to go out to the sprawling campus while he didn't have a map. By the time he'd reached cafeteria, he'd be dead hungry. Or he might not ever reach the cafeteria at all. Fujiwara was making no move to eat, since he was busy reading a thick tome so Johan didn't eat yet.

The Tamer brightened up at that. "Then want to come with me?"

Johan was about to turn around to ask his dorm mate but the reply came first. "Go ahead, I'll eat later. You're probably hungry from your school tour."

"Great!" Judai grabbed Johan's arm and ran off with him after closing the door.

Fujiwara's eyes lingered at the now-closed door they came out of. _'Judai-kun seems to be back to his old cheerful self only when around Johan-kun. How odd...'_

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The cafeteria was huge (apparently, there was no room in Duel Academia that wasn't at least the size of a conference hall) and filled with bench tables, like ones used in picnics. Some were circular tables, occupied by students with a definite group, others were squares.

When Judai and him went in, there was a hush as majority of the students stopped eating, while some stood on the spot, looking at them. Johan felt a little uncomfortable at the stares they were giving him, but Judai squeezed his hand reassuringly as he whispered, "Don't worry. They're just surprised."

"Surprised at what?"

"Well, it's... not really important! Food comes first! Come on!" And he proceeded to drag Johan to the counter where food was served. Johan noted that he was about to say something else after that pause but changed it at the last minute, and also that Judai had a tendency to drag him around in excitement, just like in the tour earlier. The first made him worried, the other one made him happy. Weird.

"Tome-san! The usual for me!" Judai shouted.

A kind old lady in a brown braid, with a white rag tied around her head and a similarly coloured apron, came out from further inside. She smiled at the sight of the brunette. "Oh, Judai-kun! It's been a long time since you've ordered that! I felt that if you weren't going to do it soon, I might forget how to do it."

"Eh, no! Your cooking's the best!"

She giggled. "Thank you, Judai-kun." Then she turned to Johan, a little confused, then to Judai beside him, then back to him again. She smiled kindly at him. "Are you a new student?"

Johan blinked then replied, albeit a little nervous, "Um, I guess. But I'm in the third year." He tried his best to show a smile.

Tome seemed to accept that happily. "Hm, then good luck, new boy. You can be sure to get lots of energy from my dishes, so do your best at studying!"

The bluenette felt elated. "Thank you."

"No problem. So what will you have?"

"Um, I don't really know what you cook..."

Judai chimed in, "Tome-san can cook anything!" which elicited a laugh from the old lady.

"But I'm not really picky..." Johan countered weakly.

"If that's the case, it's a whatever-I-make then?" She asked, still smiling.

The two boys laughed. "Sure!"

"Alright then, I'll be back."

Two minutes later, she came with another cook, both carrying trays loaded with food that they handed to the boys. "Enjoy!"

"Thank you!" They chorused before taking the offered food.

After getting the food, it was now a matter of finding seats. Johan left this to Judai, since he was the one who knew the place better anyway. The brunette nudged him with his elbow, since both hands were full with the tray. "Over here, Johan."

He gestured to a bench table currently occupied by four people, halfway through eating. Judai walked over to them, Johan following behind him. "Hey, guys."

All four looked at him at once, varying degrees of surprise on their faces, directed at both Judai and Johan. The lone girl among them asked, "Judai?"

"What's with that strange look?" He asked back. "You look like you've seen a ghost or something."

All four looked at each other apprehensively, communicating with their eyes. _'At least he's back to normal. We'll ask later.'_

"Aniki!" A small boy with glasses smiled at Judai, as he sat beside him on the bench. Johan sat next to Judai, becoming the one on the end of the long chair.

The black-clad boy sitting opposite the bespectacled student gestured toward Johan. "Who's he?"

Johan shifted slightly. Judai smiled. "He's Johan, who'll be a student here starting tomorrow."

The bluenette chuckled lightly as he rubbed the back of his head. "Nice to meet you!"

At that gesture, the four blinked, as one thought immediately crossed their minds.

'_He's similar to Judai!'_

Judai pointed them in turn. "Johan, meet Asuka," The blonde girl recovered from her shock and smiled weakly. "Misawa." The grey-haired teen nodded. "Manjyome." It was the boy wearing completely black attire, who grumbled as he shouted, "How many times do I have to tell you to add Thunder to my name!"

"And this is Shou." He indicated the blue-haired boy beside him, unfazed by Manjyome's outburst. "They're my friends and classmates."

After the hellos and hi's, everyone went back to eating their dinner. The four were friendly people and engaged him in casual chatter. Johan didn't feel uncomfortable anymore.

He delicately chewed on his food. "It's delicious." It was as good, maybe even better, than Mizuchi's cooking.

The brunette smiled at him. "Like I told you."

When Judai was smiling like that, Johan found that he always couldn't help but do the same. "Yeah."

Asuka watched them in interest. _'It's like seeing two of Judai. Well, when Judai was back in first and second year and not recently. I wonder where they met...' _

"Johan-kun... Oh, is it okay for me to call you that?" She received an affirmative response. "Where did you meet Judai?"

He replied, "Ruby Village. It's where I came from."

Misawa glanced skeptically at Judai. "You went that far?"

The brunette chewed on his fried shrimp. "I didn't really intend to go that far, but I was curious anyway."

It was Shou who asked next. "You're in the third year with us, right?" Johan nodded. "What is your Card Summoning course?"

Johan took a quick drink. "Um, I'm only attending the Lectures. It's because my magic is... unknown. Fujiwara called me Reverse Fuser."

Everyone on the table paused in their movements, though Judai wasn't that shocked since he heard Daitokuji-sensei's theory mention something similar. But still... Manjyome looked like he couldn't believe what he just heard. "No way, you're a Fuser!"

Shou added, amazed, eyes large behind his small glasses and mouth wide open, "And you're still third year!"

"You already have a title even though you're a new student. That means your abilities are special." Misawa threw in his opinion with an analytical tone, although there was a hint in his voice that showed he was impressed.

"Why Reverse, though?" Asuka inquired as she propped her elbows on the table, resting her cheek on her palm, obviously interested.

And the rest of dinner was taken over by Johan explaining what was currently known of his ability to his new friends, as Judai smiled beside him.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The night wasn't particularly cold, with only a light breeze blowing by every now and then, as Judai and Johan walked toward the blue dorm. The inky black sky wasn't starry, with only a few pinpricks of lights here and there, and it was lightly cloudy.

Judai stretched his arms. "So you're starting tomorrow, huh?"

"Yeah. I'll only have lectures with you. I wonder what kind of training Fujiwara will give me. It's probably different from other Card Summoners, right?"

"He is the only Fuser in school, after all, and in fifth year, so I can't help you with that, sorry."

Johan didn't mind. "It's okay. It's probably nothing impossible."

The brunette looked up the sky, as he asked something that had been bothering him since the afternoon, and was something he wanted to talk about in private. "I've been meaning to ask, why is your name Johan Andersen?"

"Huh?"

"Shouldn't it be the last name of Takuma-san or something?" Judai pressed on.

Johan looked confused. "But I'm not legally adopted by them. So I have a different last name. It is an orphanage, after all. But since we're all very close, it's like we're family, right?" Then he looked thoughtful. "As for Andersen... I don't really know. It's my name for as long as I can remember."

The Tamer turned to him with a perplexed face.

"I was found by Takuma-san and Mizuchi-san when I was seven. That's my earliest memory. Any of my life before that, I don't remember. I don't know if I was an abandoned kid, or if my parents are still alive at all. All I knew was that my name is Johan Andersen."

Judai was shocked at that. To think that Johan had such a sad and mysterious past... But then, even now, he was a mystery with his unknown magic ability. And also for making Judai feel a strange feeling in his heart.

"Does that make you feel sad?" Judai asked worriedly. Somehow, the image of a seven-year-old Johan curled up by himself at the street was breaking his heart.

"Sometimes. Not having a childhood memory is depressing, but then since I met everybody at the orphanage, I'm not as sad when I think about it. They may not be my first family, but they're probably who I'd consider my 'real' family. I'm no longer lonely," Johan said with a content smile.

"And you'll always be with me too, right?"

Judai blinked.

Slightly panicky, the bluenette hurriedly corrected, "Um, I meant, you'll be my friend, like Asuka, Shou, Manjyome and Misawa and other people I'll meet in the future, right?"

'_Big Brother Judai, I hope you never stop making Big Brother Johan happy!'_

The Fusion Tamer laughed. "Yeah, I will."

**To be continued...**

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Chapter Notes:

-Prism Castle: Based on one of Johan's spell cards, Prism Wall.

-Kagurazaka: Not a made up name by me, he is a minor character in the first season. He probably won't appear again but then, who knows what will happen? xD

-Skullpawn: One of Jim's cards. I think you already know who this Jim is. xD

This chapter didn't have much action for having more than 20 pages. It's because this one contained an introduction to the school and more info about the Card Summoners. Action will resume in the next chapter.

I'll say this clearly: Fujiwara Yusuke was the hardest character to write in this chapter (even though he had a lot to say here...). I've watched and re-watched the fourth season episodes that had him in it and I'm still not entirely confident that I have his character down. After all, three-fourths of the time he was shown as a villain, and the remaining one-fourth had him being disguised by Honest. He only spoke like the original him when he apologized in Episode 179.

So, do truthfully tell me if I've got something wrong about my portrayal of him in this story: a calm and serious genius who has his rare smile moments. I don't really want to butcher character personalities too much (the main problem of AU stories) so I'll be glad for any feedback that can help me write him better in the latter chapters.

Anyway, does anyone have problems with the lengthy chapters? I tend to get wordy and descriptive so nearly every chapter would most likely be as long as this. The shortest one yet is chapter 1 that has 16 pages. The previous chapter had more than 20 also. So, is this okay with you, readers?

Next chapter preview (some random dialogue):

"_He's... He's... We're..."_

"_Friends!" Two voices shouted at the same time. "... Huh?"_

_"Should we arrange for 'the viper to constrict him'?"_

_He wanted power._

_What was with this particular moment and action that made it so... different, and somehow, more blissful?_

Review if you please. All comments and suggestions are appreciated.

~Rine-Line


	4. Shifting Winds

Hi, hi, welcome to chapter four!

Wow, a week has passed by. This chapter was delayed because school is about to start over here where I live, and I had to take care of my enrollment documents. Surprisingly, this chapter rivals chapter two in terms of length. So maybe that's compensation enough? xD

Before I delve into this chapter's details, here's a quick reply to **Endless Dream**, an anonymous reviewer: Thank you! I really hope to fulfil your expectations regarding battles; after all, the fic's only at the tip of the iceberg. As for the question about Fusers, I originally intended to put the explanation here, so your question would have been answered even if I didn't reply like this. And your guesses and reasons on the types of mages the other characters will be are very interesting. You got some of them right (perhaps they were obvious) but hehe, I bet some will come across as very surprising to you. xD

Hm, I think I forgot to mention this earlier but Judai is taller than Johan in this story. And what, it's an important fact now? You'll find out at the end of this chapter! :D

Now then, no need to keep you waiting any longer! Read on, and hope you enjoy this very long chapter!

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**Fusion Hearts**

**Chapter 4: Shifting Winds**

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Johan was not lost.

No, of course he was not. The school was just constantly changing its appearance to confuse his mind and make him lo—

'_Alright, I admit it!'_

Who are you talking to, little boy?

'_...'_

Fate cackled.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It had been a nice, sunny morning. Johan woke up with lots of spare time to prepare for his only class and breakfast. But he was assaulted by the news that Fujiwara didn't attend any class, due to self-study and research, so the Fuser was in no hurry to eat breakfast.

Which only meant that Johan had to go get breakfast by himself.

Johan took a deep breath as he went out of the dorm building.

EXACTLY one minute later...

'_Where am I?'_

The Reverse Fuser looked around him. There were trees, some smaller plants, and some buildings he could not recognize. _'Oh, great...'_

"Wha'cha doin' here, mate?" Someone suddenly said from behind Johan. He spun around to see a familiar face. His jaw slacked as he pointed at the capped guy in surprise. "Ah, it's you!"

"Huh?"

"The Tamer guy who looked like a cowboy!"

Said guy blinked, and then laughed heartily. "Oh, you must've seen me durin' practicals!"

Light green orbs flickered. "It was yesterday, actually."

"Right. The name's Jim. Jim Crocodile Cook. Fifth-year. Yours?"

"Johan Andersen. Third year." He shook the offered hand.

Jim grinned. "Now then, wer' you lost?"

"Uh..." A sweatdrop ran down the back of the bluenette's head. The Tamer laughed. "No prob! Most offa' new kids get lost on the'r first week."

Oh, he was definitely NOT going to be lost on _just_ his first week. "H-how did you know I was new? I said I was third year."

"Rumours, kiddo. Run fast'r than a spider a-scuttlin'," Jim replied with a grin. "Mister Reverse Fuser." He patted, and then ruffled Johan's wild hair.

Johan pouted. He just fixed his hair this morning, damn it! ... Not like his hair was ever not wild in the first place but... It took effort to at least comb it, you know!

"Hahaha... So... You headin' for food?"

The teal-haired teen nodded. His stomach was complaining already.

"Off we go marchin' then!"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Breakfast was relatively normal. Class was not.

"So, everyone, starting today, Johan-kun will be attending this Lecture class-nya. Let's give him a warm welcome!" Daitokuji announced in front of a full class, with Johan beside him, wearing a small smile.

One unfamiliar blue-clad girl raised a question, "Are you really the new guy called Reverse Fuser?"

Did reputation and title really precede anyone in this school? It was just like back at Ruby Village, only that in there, it was his aptitude for music that made him known. The bluenette gave an uneasy grin. "Yeah."

Several cries of 'Wow!' and 'Amazing!' came from impressed students. Another piped up, "Can you give us a demonstration at Practical later?"

"S-sorry, but I won't be attending any practical. And I don't really have proper control of my ability yet."

Some were disappointed but dropped it anyway. Just when Johan thought the question-and-answer portion was over...

"What's your relationship with Yuki Judai?"

"... Eh?"

Almost immediately, green eyes sought through the class, and made contact with equally searching brown orbs right away. When the two boys realized the fact that they were staring at each other (how many times has it been?), and that everyone was watching them do it, they tore off their gazes at once, and began looking at anything else but each other, like the ceiling and the wall, faces slightly red.

What the heck was that question? Johan thought, his mind in a jumble he could not fix fast. It was just a question, but somehow his mind and heart were interpreting it in different ways. His mind was screaming 'friend!' just like he said during their talk last night, but his heart was convincingly whispering something else more than that. "He's... He's... We're..."

"Friends!" Two voices shouted at the same time. "... Huh?"

Eyebrows rose in suspicion and curiosity and some giggling was heard.

Fortunately for Judai and Johan, Daitokuji-sensei decided to come to their rescue by declaring the start of the day's lessons.

And fate rolled around in laughter.

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Morning classes lasted till before lunch, so that meant practicals began after eating. Johan had begun to get used to eating with five people: Shou, Asuka, Manjyome, Misawa and Judai.

Shou asked after sipping his soup. "Johan-kun, is your practical this afternoon too?"

"Yep, but it's much later, so I guess I have time to watch you all," he replied.

Manjyome laughed arrogantly as he raised one chopstick-wielding hand. "Hah, just watch as me, the almighty Manjyome Thunder-sama, outshine everyone in practical!"

People near their table shied away from the black-clad student, fearful that some random lightning would strike down from out of nowhere. But the others sitting in their table paid no mind, as if used to this happening. Except Johan, that is. He turned to Judai, confused. "Does that happen often? And I thought his name was Manjyome Jun?"

The brunette replied, "It happens every day so you should get used to it. Oh and for his name, yeah, you're right about that, but he is an Electricity Elementist, and he likes to boast about that so much, he wants to be called Manjyome Thunder by everybody instead."

Misawa added calmly, drinking, "He's trying to get his name changed, actually."

Johan laughed nervously. "R-really?"

Duel Academia sure had its own quirks. Maybe he should learn not to be surprised at anything anymore...

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Johan smiled as he leaned on the guardrail of the seats overlooking the arena below, as he watched his classmates from Lecture doing their practical. It looked fun, like it was just a card game, as students pitted their strengths against each other.

"**Frigid Ice Pillars, Activate!"**

'_So Asuka is an Ice Elementist...' _He thought as he watched her rain down sharp icicles at her opponent skillfully. He could dodge them with enhanced speed but she already had another card prepared to trap him, a rectangular sheet of ice this time, along with spreading ice on the ground, making him slip ungracefully and land on his butt.

"Oww..." The poor Inductor cried, to everyone's amusement.

It must be thrilling to 'play the game' like that. But...

'_I can't fight.'_

His magic ability may be unique, unknown even, but it's not something to be used in a battle. That's why he needed to be protected in the Academia.

He shuddered. _'If I were to face those guys from the Dark Army again... What will I do? Run away and save myself? All because I can't defeat them?'_

"Johan!" A shout interrupted his thoughts. He looked down the field again, to see the culprit as Judai, waving. He smiled back, forgetting his worries.

"Bring it on, Manjyome!" The brunette looked pumped up as he faced his opponent on the other side of the arena.

"Thunder!" He corrected. "This is the day you fall to me, slacker!" Manjyome taunted.

"Whatever you say." Judai didn't look the least bit scared. He just stood confidently on his side of the field, seemingly calm and composed, yet there were traces of excitement on his face.

"**Duel!"**

Green eyes shone in excitement and anticipation. Then... _'Um, what was I thinking about again? Ah, never mind...' _It was exhilarating to watch Judai in a Card Duel for fun for the first time, anyway.

Manjyome, being an Elementist, used electricity-based attacks against Judai's Neos. He appeared to have the winning edge, driving Judai into a corner. That is, until the brunette called out another monster, a blue glowing human-shaped one.

"**Neos! Glow Moss! FUSION!"**

Just like the first time he saw the Tamer do it, it was still a breathtaking scene, as there appeared a gleaming combination of the two monsters, a strong aura emanating from it.

There was an extra effect to the students around: shock. The Electricity Elementist in particular looked like he'd seen a ghost (well, the Neos fusion did have that chilling glow appearance...). "What, you're finally doing Fusions again?"

Judai replied with a triumphant grin, "It's not like I'm not allowed to do that, aren't I?"

"No fair, you—"

"Go, Glow Neos!"

BOOM!

When the smoke cleared, Manjyome was laying face-up on the field, on his back, knocked out.

The Fusion Tamer's victorious expression didn't change, as he did his winning pose, thumb, forefinger and middle finger pointed towards his fallen opponent. "Gotcha!"

'_Wow, he really is powerful... Fusion, huh...'_

That term suddenly gave Johan a revelation.

'_Oh crap, I'm late for my practical!'_

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Late was an understatement. He was absolutely, utterly, painstakingly _late_. It was because he got lost, of course, and had to ask for directions from so many people along the way.

His training spot, decided by his mentor, was an open grassy field near the dorms. Johan made it there, gasping for breath, in time to see Fujiwara seating under a tree, back leaned against the trunk, as he read a book.

"Fujiwara-san! Sorry, I'm late!" He greeted.

The book closed with a soft 'thump' as the Fuser replied calmly. "Don't worry about it. At least, I was able to confirm that you really have a lack of sense of direction. Something to note in my research, I suppose."

Johan didn't know if he should be happy or angry about that. While it was nice that he wasn't yelled at, having his inability to find his way quickly to be considered as something research-worthy was kind of unnerving... Ah, the mystery of the minds of geniuses...

Fujiwara stood up, brushing dust out of his pants. "Well, shall we start?"

"Um, I don't mind, but can I ask you something?"

"What?"

Johan noted that the fifth-year didn't seem bothered at all that his curiosity was unintentionally delaying the training. But he couldn't help but act on it. "How did you become a Fuser when there are no teachers here who are one?"

Fujiwara pondered for a moment before saying, "Because doing things is harder than in theory."

'_H-huh?' _Conversations with geniuses really were strange sometimes...

Perhaps the surprise and confusion showed on the third year student's face because Fujiwara decided to explain and elaborate further. "There's a reason why Fuser is the most difficult class of Card Summoner and very few people choose it, Johan."

"Not all monsters can fuse with a human, because both sides have their limitations, physically and mentally. If a human's body and mind cannot support and maintain the burden of having merged with a being, they are left vulnerable. You cannot become a Fuser in one day, it takes years. This is because you have to build trust with your chosen monster."

Fujiwara's left hand still held the book he was reading before, so in his habit to tuck his hands into his pockets, only the right hand followed. "I strengthened my bond with Honest for a year or so, and it took all of my fourth year to practice and train myself."

"Fusers are unique in that they can be both physical and magical Card Summoners. Equippers and Inductors are restricted to fighting by themselves, while Tamers and Elementists rely on monsters and elements. But Fusers gain both the physical and magical ability of the monster they fused with, like with Honest and me. I can choose to fight physically with his strength and wings, or I can use his magical powers, just like when I cleaned up the mess in the room."

His gaze didn't waver as he continued. "That's why there aren't too many magicians who choose this course. It's the length of time and the difficulty. Many want to be able to use magic at once, and are not really patient. Well, you are a special case; you don't need the extra year to form a strong bond with a monster, so you can go straight to training."

Johan was dumbfounded. He didn't know that Fusers were _that _special, and it was _that_ difficult to become one by normal means (his case was special like Fujiwara said). The duels of his classmates that he saw earlier along with this train of thoughts gave him more determination to learn and control his strange magic.

Seeing that Johan seemed satisfied, Fujiwara prompted, "Ready to begin now?"

"Yes!" The bluenette replied eagerly.

He received a slight nod. "Let's start with the basics: activating your Duel Energy. This is relatively easy, though, so we won't spend too much time on this, but this is what you'll be doing most of the time, since it's what lets you use magic."

Johan listened attentively, feeling the cool afternoon wind rush against his face. Windy days were nice, and made him remember about the times he spent them near the Gem Spring, playing his flute or sleeping up in the branches of Gem Tree. _'Ah, no time for daydreaming now...'_

"Based from what you told me, you activate your energy nearly the same way as everybody does, even if your first time was different. While it's convenient that you are able to activate it in your mind, it's still better to do it like everybody else does."

The blue-haired teen nodded.

"Duel Energy is present in your body but it's always scattered when you're not doing any magic. That's why you need a spell to activate, or gather it, for you to easier channel it to the card. The process feels like there's a river flowing through your body. Your mind decides what direction and how powerful it flows. You only need to do it once and after that, you can do as much magic as you like until you're tired or you've accomplished your task."

Fujiwara raised a forefinger in explanation. "Visualize it like this. Think of your Duel Energy currently as separate blobs of water, all different in shape and size. Using your mind, gather them together to form a river, like the current of blood that continuously circulates around your body. Once the river is complete and you've collected all the droplets, it will flow on its own, without the help of your concentration. That's when you let it meld with your body, like your circulating blood, by using the spell word you ought to have heard so many times by now."

"Try it. You can close your eyes, like most people do, if it will help you concentrate better," the fifth-year urged.

"Okay." Johan took a deep breath, and then closed his eyes. He could still feel the breeze and hear other sounds of nature, but he blocked them out with the darkness of his mind. The more he concentrated within himself, the better he could envisage like Fujiwara told him to. In his mind's eye, he could see the orange globules floating out and about in the darkness. With the invisible force of his mind, he joined them together to form bigger ones, and using the same force, made them flow. Like in the first time he did it back at the orphanage, he felt a river of power rushing throughout his body. When it resembled the Gem Spring in terms of its current, Johan let the stream merge with his being as he shouted, **"Duel!"**

At that, the river felt like it was blood in his body instead. It felt so... natural, but the trace of energy lingered and never disappeared completely. Johan slowly opened his eyes, to be met by the sight of Fujiwara sporting a rare small smile.

"Very good. For your first time doing it without help, that is. You took quite a while with that, but with practice, you'll be able to do it faster, and also without closing your eyes," the Fuser complimented.

Peridot eyes shone in happiness. It was true that on his first time, he was helped by that mysterious voice. And now that he had been successful in doing it by himself, it felt so wonderful, a heart-fulfilling accomplishment. It was such a warm feeling, similar to how he felt when he was playing his flute and hearing praise or seeing the happy smiles on people's faces because of it. It was simply amazing. "Thanks."

"Do you need to rest a bit after that before we continue?"

Johan shook his head. He just felt so energized, like Judai was when he gave the school tour, and it was like he could do anything, pumped up on excitement and the magic energy streaming in his body.

"To the main part we go, then. Using your Reverse Fuser magic."

The bluenette wore an enthusiastic expression as he paid attention to his teacher, still feeling Duel Energy running through his veins.

"This is my theory which I want you to put test regarding your ability, Dimension Crossing. The first time you did it, you weren't probably thinking or concentrating, given the situation you were in, but now that you could, this could apply. Creating portals might seem random at first sight, but then, you do them with a purpose in mind, right? If back then, you did it to get away from your current place, then the opposite could also hold true."

"What do you mean?"

"I think it is possible for you to create portals, not to get away from where you currently are, but to arrive at a certain place or destination. It's certainly useful if you could do it, don't you think?"

Johan's mouth formed an 'o' in realization. Fujiwara's theory made sense. And that could be of a huge help to him! He'd no longer need to wander around, and he could arrive at the place he wanted to in an instant. If his lack of sense of direction didn't affect his Dimension Crossing, then this was certainly something that will make his life easier.

"Wow, I really want to be able to do that!"

Fujiwara smiled in challenge. "Let's see if you can do it then. We'll start with something easy." He pointed to a tree north of them, a five-minute walking distance from where they were. "Go there. You can still see it from here, right? Concentrate, and try to picture the place in your mind. Direct the flow of your Duel Energy to your imagination. See if it helps you, and you might be able to make a portal in front of you that connects to that tree or the area under it. I'll survey you from above and see if you can do it."

The Fuser then did a Card Fusion, Honest's wings appearing on his back. He took off into the air and stayed there, watching Johan.

The teal-haired teen gulped, now feeling slightly nervous. He didn't feel so when he activated his Duel Energy because he'd done it once before, and his memories and the sensations he felt back then helped him in his own attempt earlier, but this one was different. It was something new. What if he messed up? Would he be wandering forever in some unknown place? Will he be alone? He shuddered.

'_Yeah, I will. I'll always be your friend.'_

Why did that voice echo in his head just now? Why would he be thinking about Judai at a time like this? He needed to concentrate! But he couldn't deny that, thanks to that, he no longer felt as nervous as before.

He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, before banishing unnecessary thoughts in his mind, letting only the scenery of where he was supposed to go to remain in there. The huge tree, swaying in the wind, surrounded by grass, sunlight shining down at it from a diagonal angle... At the same time, he controlled the flow of Duel Energy in his body, sending them to his mind like fuel to his imagination. Despite the darkness his lidded eyes provided, he could sense light suddenly shining in front of him, one that is bright and powerful.

Meanwhile, deep in his mind, tiny coloured crystals began forming into the picture of his destination, as if they were jigsaw puzzle pieces combining together to create a recognizable image. It could be compared to mosaic painting too. It was like his mind was now a blank canvas and the crystals were the colouring materials. Small emerald shards gathered to become the leaves of the tree, while some of them gave hue to the grass. Brown pieces lined up to make the trunk while sparkling blue ones recreated the sky background. Minute-yellow gems represented the sunlight. The process was fast, as if the colourful rocks knew where they should go. Soon enough, they were done, and set in Johan's mind was a clear, distinct and accurate picture of his destination.

He opened his eyes.

Blinding him for a moment was a large shining square gemstone-shaped portal, at the right height for him to go through as if it was just a door. There was white light at where he should enter, but the edges shone in rainbow colour.

"Wow..." He breathed. Was this real? Did he succeed?

Only one way to find out.

Gathering his courage, he stepped forward and entered the portal.

As he did so, however, the memories of that fateful night suddenly came rushing into his mind, prompting him to bring a hand to his head for support and close his eyes. There was the sound of a jewel shattering, and he felt his surroundings shake, like in an earthquake.

'_Ugh... Wh-what's...'_

And then, the ground underneath him inside the portal gave way and he fell.

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Fujiwara gritted his teeth as he flew through the air. What on earth was happening? One moment it looked like the magic was successful, as a second portal was slowly opening right underneath the destination tree, but then when Johan entered, the portal he was supposed to come out of stopped building itself halfway, and exploded, disintegrating into indistinguishable shards.

Johan's Dimension Crossing created two portals at the same time, one in front of him, and another on where he was going to go out. That was what Fujiwara witnessed from his aerial view. His entrance was completed first, while the exit was halfway completed, though at the rate it was appearing, it would be done once he entered, because it was very fast.

And yet...

Once Johan stepped through his magic-made entrance, the building process of his exit stopped and burst apart.

However, it appeared he wouldn't get stuck in his own portal.

From out of the corner of his eye, Fujiwara saw rainbow-coloured light shining from somewhere on his right.

'_Isn't that where the practice arenas are?'_

Gathering strength into his wings, he quickly sped off.

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"Yeah! Go for it, Shou!"

Judai cheered from the stands as he watched his friend duke it out with another of their classmates. Shou was a Tamer like him, not to mention his roommate as well, so among his friends, he was the closest. Johan was... well, special (he didn't know why yet). Speaking of Johan...

'_I wonder how he's doing with his practical...'_

"Hey, what's that?" Someone shouted out.

The brunette was forced to shield his eyes as bright light began shining from high above him. Blinking, he then tried to look up at it, like everybody else, curious and wondering what it exactly was. But Judai faintly recognized it. _'Why does it look and feel familiar...?'_

And then he remembered that night.

'_That's...!'_

The light suddenly began to take shape, that of a bright square portal.

"Waaaah!" A voice yelled from inside the white light. Everyone was shocked. Wasn't that...

And in a matter of seconds, Johan came flailing out of the portal, which was right on top of the brunette. Judai's eyes widened when he saw the bluenette come out then closed them as he fell down the ground hard on his back, as Johan crashed down on him completely. The Reverse Fuser's exit detonated in a flash of minute crystal shards that were carried away by the air.

"Oww..." Two voices echoed at the same time. That ungraceful tumble was definitely painful for both of them, more so on Judai and his poor back.

The rest of the class immediately came running at the area where the two fallen boys lay. The teacher, Miss Ayukawa, yelled, "Are you all right?"

Unlike the first time, Johan's head laid on the open space by the side of Judai's head, so his face was completely mashed by the cold stone floor.

The flapping of wings caught the spectators' attention, prompting them to temporarily look away from the jumble of limbs that was Judai and Johan, and up in the sky where Fujiwara was. The Fuser landed gently on the ground, and he shone as his wings disappeared. He clutched Honest's card between two fingers.

"Well, this is certainly interesting..."

Johan slowly got up, only to look down directly on glittering amber orbs staring back at him. He quickly got off and backed away a few paces, terrified. _'Why did I come out here?'_

The Fusion Tamer sat up, despite his back protesting against the action. "Johan? W-Why did your portal appear here?"

"Well, that's..." He couldn't continue, feeling the stares of his classmates trained on him.

Fujiwara answered for him. "Dimension Crossing gone haywire, it seems."

The rest of the students, who didn't know and had never seen the display of power before now, wore expressions of utter amazement. It was a never-before-seen type of magic after all.

"I messed up..." Johan said with a sigh as he sat down cross-legged.

"Not necessarily," Fujiwara countered as he walked nearer to the two of them. "If your first time was of basis, then this is an improvement. While you failed in reaching your destination, you didn't faint at all, right?"

Both Judai and Johan gasped when they realized that he was right. Johan in particular was blushing from the half-praise.

"That means you're getting more used to having Duel Energy running in your body. That's the good news."

The Fusion Tamer tilted his head. "And the bad one?"

"Why, of all places, did Johan end up here?"

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In the deep underground of Sapphire City lay the base of operations for the notorious group, the Dark Army. They practiced discretion, always being sure to cover their tracks when they came out during the night, so the kingdom's own peacekeepers were never able to catch them. Those who bumbled and were captured were mostly the low-ranking ones who didn't know the darker secrets of the organization and could not divulge any useful information. And so the Dark Army sowed terror among the citizens in the city at the rise of night.

They always protected their identities with their black cloaks that blended so perfectly with moonless nights. Rumours, however, told tales of the head of the rogue group. He was said to never appear in public, letting his minions do his bidding. But this was not an act of laziness; rather it was that he was powerful that he did not do such 'mundane' jobs. There was nothing else to discern his identity other than the title the members call him by: Mad King.

Lowly henchmen did not receive orders from him, but from a special group of advisors that were said to be powerful magicians as well, though not as much as the reigning lord himself, but still strong in their own right. No names were known for them either, and only special codenames. They mostly lead a group of five or so of the weak members. Stories passed around by word of mouth said there were eight of them, but nobody was sure of the exact number.

The most recent news was that of the appearance of a Dark Army Inductor by the title of 'Scout', who lead a group of Equippers, and the most active in nightly raids. He was able to defeat the Rainbow Kingdom soldiers who came to stop him with ease, showing that the Card Summoners of the Dark Army were not just your normal magicians. Judging by his power, many speculate that he might indeed be one of the higher-ups in the organization. As for his slightly flashy activity, perhaps it had something to do with his supposed name. He was 'Scout'— a spy, a gauge of the ability of the kingdom's own troops. It mattered not whether he was seen or not, because his role was to see the strength of the other side, and make them show their hand by force so that his own organization had data on strengths and weaknesses.

Under the cover of the darkness below land, Mad King himself was sitting in a throne in the cavern that acted as the Dark Army's center. The cave had been obviously modified to suit the needs of the humans living in it. On the rocky walls hang dimly-lit torches, not strong enough to drive away the darkness, but bright enough that the pathway and obstacles could be seen.

"Is that so, Scout?" He spoke in a booming yet menacing voice that echoed off the excavated stone walls.

"Yes," was the respectful reply that came from 'Scout', who was kneeling before the leader.

"That's definitely an intriguing magician. However, regarding that ability... Nobody may know or have an idea, but I have a hunch on what creature is currently possessing the boy."

The Inductor looked up in surprise. "You do, my Lord?"

"Yes. A very powerful one if I am correct, but as of now, it is unclear. I need more evidence to back this guess. Perhaps if that boy were to show another form of his ability, one that would make the identity of the monster more obvious, my speculation can be proven."

"Then," Scout suggested, "Should we arrange for 'the viper to constrict him'?" It was obviously a code of some sort.

A sinister smirk that appeared on his face forebode of something dangerous. "Yes..."

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Johan sighed as he fell down on his bed, feeling completely fatigued and hungry, having no energy but to remain face-up on his bed, staring at the white-gray ceiling.

Two months have passed since he started his magic schooling in Duel Academia. The days were constantly filled with lessons and training of his ability. He mostly hung out with Judai and the gang during breaks and sometimes on weekends. He'd gotten closer to Asuka, Shou, Manjyome and Misawa, though not as much as with Judai, whom he has now considered his best friend. But because teachers often gave a lot of homework, even those two days were mostly crammed too.

Furthermore, students were not allowed to leave the campus, since the Dark Army had been more active recently. And while they rarely came out during the day, that was still no guarantee that you'd be killed or captured by them. This applied especially to Judai and Johan, who were on the constant watchful eye of their teachers, although the two did not know that.

In the eight weeks, it had been more apparent that there was more to his magic than originally thought. No matter how many times he tried however, he could not do a perfect Dimension Crossing with a specific destination. He'd always end up farther off, a good distance at least, so Fujiwara forbid him to use it outside of training, because if by some unlucky chance, he might end up outside the campus, where he'd be an easy target for the Dark Army. He'd improved at the very least in each attempt he made, making the exit closer to his intended area, unlike the first time where he ended up in a very unexpected place.

He could also activate his Duel Energy faster than before and it was now like second nature to him, like majority of the students. He could do it without closing his eyes, and also like the first time he did it, mentally, without shouting the spell word. There were some occasions in Dimension Crossing, however, when he ended up going out of a portal that would appear somewhere near where Judai was, getting him in embarrassing situations, because apparently, his portals had a mind of their own, and liked appearing on top of the Fusion Tamer.

As for that little mystery, Fujiwara still had no idea.

Of course, his reputation and title still preceded him and while at first, he would feel apprehensive about it, he had gotten used to the wondering stares and whispers that surrounded him when he walked around, both in front of him and behind him. He wouldn't feel very nervous when Judai was with him and they were talking, however.

_Judai_.

He closed his eyes, willing the light warmth in his cheeks to go away. Over the course of days, that strange feeling in his heart he'd had ever since he met the brunette at the Gem Spring became more pronounced. At first, it was very tiny but it grew with each passing day. At times, it was there, and sometimes, no. But he'd figured out that it was there often when he accidentally ended up too close to Judai. When they were just speaking to each other and acted like the friends he was sure they were, he'd feel just fine. But most intimate contact like some mishaps in Dimension Crossing that landed him crashing from the sky on top of Judai sent butterflies fluttering in his stomach. It was a sensation that was both pleasant and unnerving at the same time.

It was something he was experiencing for the first time. But he could not exactly talk to anyone about it, because it felt... private. And those kinds of things were what you were supposed to share with your best friend, but when said best friend was the one involved, it didn't feel right.

He rolled over on his bed, burying his face in his pillow sluggishly. Was life really this complicated? He contemplated. It felt like a rush, a raging waterfall, where he had jumped off and never landed, and the thrill always present in his veins. On the other hand, life in Ruby Village was like a slow and calm stream, the days and nights monotonous and peaceful, surrounded by his music and telling stories to the orphan kids.

Was gaining the ability to use magic a fair trade to not being able to return to that old life anymore?

He didn't know. He refused to answer that question, even if he knew; the choice was just that heavy.

It was not that he hated having gained magic powers. Unique and useless in combat as it was, he considered it a gift by the god of their kingdom. In the stories he told the younger orphans, the dragon god was a kind being, and always gives blessings to the people who have been good. He didn't want to say that he was exactly one of those good people, but the thought that he was given a gift without anything much from him in exchange was a blessing.

Having a positive outlook in life and always looking at the bright side of things... That's what he was. Others might call it stupidity, some could consider it sentimental of him, many would say idealistic, but he wouldn't mind.

Because there was always hope.

Even though the threat of the Dark Army hung over his head every day, somewhere in the darkness their sudden involvement in his life provided, there was a small light.

'_And that's Judai...'_

To be a target of the Dark Army at such a young age like he was, it was very frightening. But it was the Tamer's reassuring presence that gave him the energy to face the day with a smile.

'_Just keep smiling, Johan. Because I promise you... I'll protect you.'_

He curled up on his bed, feeling a warm smile form on his lips right there and then. Even if he didn't admit it out loud, he knew deep inside of him that Judai gave a sense of security to him. That was what the strange feeling in his chest told him, and he couldn't help but agree. That's why on the night the Dark Army attacked the orphanage, he trusted Judai to save everyone in the house, and did not blame him. Judai could fight with his monsters, while he could not. But that fact, rather than make him feel weak and useless, made him feel special and safe instead. And only Judai could do that. Only Judai could make him feel like that. Had it been anyone else, he was sure that he wouldn't feel the same.

And that was a reason why he didn't mind having a power that could not harm others.

He never knew that one person could change his life this much, so much as to affect how he thinks and how he feels.

Yet, at the same time, this unintentional dependency on Judai was his weakness. It was the dark fog he could not drive away. It made him selfish. It made him wish that he really did have the ability to fight like other people. It made him remain discontented with the way things are, when he should have been just satisfied enough. Because Judai made him feel safe, it was human instinct for him to cling to the pillar of security.

He didn't want Judai to die.

It was the conflict of his heart that he could not settle. While he did indulge in the joy of being protected by Judai, he couldn't take it if that meant Judai would sacrifice himself, if it meant that Judai had to face the Dark Army alone while he hid behind the walls of Duel Academia. If there ever came a time where they'd have to confront the evil organization, he wanted to be beside Judai, not behind him, or run away to another place. He wished to be able to protect the people who are important to him by doing something other than hiding from the threat. But the way he was now, he'd be just dead weight in any battle.

He wanted power.

As vile a desire as it was, he couldn't deny it.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Judai? Judai, hello? Blizzard Prince calling Yuki Judai!"

Poke. Poke. POKE.

"Ouch! ...H-huh?"

The brunette immediately put a hand to his forehead, in effect stopping his daydreaming, as the culprit sported a happy smile in his success. "Fubuki-san, what was that for?" He complained.

Fubuki dramatically replied, "Because I've been calling you for the past five minutes and you wouldn't even look at me! That pained me so, Judai-kun!"

The Tamer blinked. He was? He didn't realize! Was he really deep in thought that much? Still, he couldn't help but sigh at the overdramatic tendencies of the fifth-year in front of him. Tenjoin Fubuki, also known as Blizzard Prince, would never change.

"What do you want?" He himself was surprised at the slight irritation in his voice. He wasn't really angry at Asuka's older brother, just annoyed that he was distracted, that's all.

"Now, now, that's not the way to talk to your senpai, Judai-kun," Fubuki replied in a playfully reprimanding voice. "I was just curious."

"Curious of what?"

Fubuki smiled mischievously as he patted Judai on the head. "Because you've never daydreamed till now! You sleep and then dream, that's what you used to do. Why the sudden change now? Are you thinking of someone?"

'_Yeah, I am,' _the brunette replied in his mind, though he didn't want to say it out loud, because he knew Fubuki would pester him about it till he learned the truth. But that was the Ice Elementist's (like his sister) way of showing concern, having been acquainted with him for three years now. If Shou called him Aniki and was dependent on him as big brother, then that was also how he felt about Fubuki, minus the calling Aniki part.

Truth was, he was thinking of a certain Reverse Fuser, making him spaced out. And just like Fubuki said, he didn't normally do that, but when it came to the bluenette, it was always him, his mind and his heart arguing and pondering about some relevant (to him, anyway) things.

"Don't worry about me, I'm just fine. I'm not like I was before, right?" He tried not to burden Fubuki with his troubles.

The Blizzard Prince ruffled his junior's hair, smiling. "Yeah, you're not and everyone's glad for that. Still, I wonder what really happened when you went out. You came back to Duel Academia with a smile and with a new friend."

Judai blushed lightly at the implication of Johan, because the newbie magician was just filling his thoughts before.

"Well? Can you tell me what's bothering you?" Fubuki asked, still grinning.

"It's... I don't really know..." He was just confused, unable to sort out his thoughts and his feelings properly, which made him spaced out in the first place. He was experiencing feelings he never felt before and he didn't know what to do about it. When it was not related to food or Card Summoning, he was unsure. He couldn't just decide and settle this complicated matter in a Card Duel.

Fubuki removed his hand from the top of Judai's head. After a while, he said astutely, "It seems that this aspect of you will never change, Judai-kun. Telling your friends about your trouble is not burdening them, you know."

The brunette looked up to him with surprised eyes. "Fubuki-san..."

"KYAAAA! It's Fubuki-sama!"

"There he is!"

A group of girls then came running to where the two of them were and swarmed the Blizzard Prince, prompting Judai to stand up and back away lest he get trampled by them. Fubuki's fangirls were rather... wild.

"Ladies, no rushing. There's plenty of me to go around~" Fubuki declared with a sweet smile, as he struck a pose.

Some of the girls fainted.

Judai sighed. So where did the _slightly _more mature and brotherly Fubuki of thirty seconds before go?

Tenjoin Fubuki, also known as Blizzard Prince, would REALLY never change.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"So what do you think happened?"

Shou looked up from browsing through his cards, sending an inquiring look at the one who asked the question, Asuka.

Currently, four of them were at the lounge of the blue dorm. There were couches and tables there, so most students who didn't like spending their free time under the sun preferred the place. While there were normally six of them in their little group, Judai and Johan got detention during lecture, for a really stupid yet funny reason. It was because the Tamer fell asleep in the middle of the discussion, crossing his arms on top of the desk as a pillow for his head. Johan was seated next to him, and while this was a normal occurrence and the new guy had gotten used to Judai's sleeping-in-the-classroom habits, on this particular day the Reverse Fuser accidentally did something different. And obviously disastrous.

Johan usually nudged him lightly and quietly till he woke up groggily but today the bluenette by some chance poked him in the armpits, causing the Tamer to wake up, naturally.

It's just that, unlike the previous times, said Tamer woke laughing out loud.

And evidently, by some invisible iron rule that was practiced by all schools, magic or not, disrupting class by laughing out loud, even more so when there was an implication that you were asleep a few seconds before that unexpected action, meant that you had detention.

Luck wasn't on the two teens' side today but the mischievous crack-head fate apparently was.

And now, back to the situation at hand... Shou put down his cards as he answered the blonde girl's question with one of his own. "You mean, when Aniki disappeared to Ruby Village and came back as his old self?"

"He's not completely reverted," Manjyome, who was seated lazily on the couch, retorted with a frown. "He's still not over _that_, it's obvious."

Asuka's worry showed up even more on her face when the Electricity Elementist mentioned and put emphasis on the incident nobody really liked to remember. But then, he was a rather blunt person who had a weird way of showing how he was also worried about their friend. "Even if he'll never be the same anymore, at least he's no longer blaming himself about it, and I'm glad for it. What I'm wondering about is... I wonder if Johan-kun had something to do with Judai's personality changing to something similar to how he was before."

"His idiotic happy-go-lucky self, you mean? Though I have to admit, although I don't like it, he's much less of an idiot now. That practical the day after he came back was the fastest time he ever beat me." Manjyome crossed his arms, grumbling.

"We can't say for sure, but I do agree with your theory, Asuka," Misawa said as he interlaced his fingers and rested his chin on them, in a posture of pondering. "It would really seem that way, given that, that's the only time we didn't see him. But it's almost hard to believe that he could change so much in a day and a half."

Shou voiced out his thoughts in a quiet and unsure voice. "And they seem really close, as if they've been friends for a long time, or like they've known each other their whole life..."

At that statement, everyone remained quiet for a little while, sorting out their own thoughts and opinions on the matter.

The Ice Queen shattered the silence, looking uneasy. "If the two of them are that close, then the Dark Army might do what they did before again. And this time, to Johan."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

A beautiful full moon graced the sky that night. It was the queen of the heavens, and the stars looked content settling on the sidelines with their tiny lights.

However, the sight wasn't the only thing beautifying the night.

If one were to tune out the hooting of owls and the barking of dogs, one would be able to hear the faint song of a flute being played so cordially from up a tree, one of the many in the campus of Duel Academia.

Gentle fingers pressed up and down on the holes of the musical instrument, like those of a skillful weaver. The melody was comparable to a crafted piece of art, not perfect but wonderful enough to be enjoyed and appreciated. It had its rough edges, like a diamond just unearthed, yet the emotions behind each note were honest and clear as untainted gems.

Johan didn't feel cold; the warmth his song was providing blanketed him from the chill most nights gave. Although the air was free-flowing from where he was sitting, which was a sturdy branch up a big tree, he endured the cold. His shirt sleeves reached up to his wrist, anyway, and the fabric was rather thick for night clothes.

He was secluded in the world of his music so he had no idea how those who heard the flute-playing reacted, the list composed of mainly the students of Duel Academia. Most of them were asleep, and thus oblivious to the sound, but those who were awake literally stopped on their tracks or whatever they were doing when the melody reached their ears.

Asuka's pen halted as she closed her eyes, enabling her to feel and enjoy the music more. _'It's a sad song... but somehow, it gives a warm feeling too...'_

Meanwhile, Manjyome was just about to close his eyes and go to sleep when he heard the tune. He said nothing, and merely adjusted his laying position. But he couldn't deny that the music was giving him positive vibes about his dilemma.

Misawa closed the book he was reading as he listened to the music. While he admitted that he did enjoy it, the flute-playing also made him curious, because as far as he knew, there were no prominent musicians among the students.

Shou looked over the empty bed opposite him. He hadn't noticed but sometime during the night Judai had sneaked away. Most likely, it was because he couldn't sleep. The brown-haired Tamer seemed to do that a lot in the previous months, ever since coming back from his adventure in Ruby Village. It didn't seem like he was going back to his old self again, but that there was something bothering his mind... and heart. _'Aniki...'_

"Can't sleep again?"

Johan abruptly stopped and opened his eyes (when he played, his eyelids automatically closed themselves, enabling him to feel the music more). He turned his head around, spotting none other than Judai standing under the tree. With a smile, he jumped off the branch, landing right in front of the Tamer. The branch wasn't that high anyway so he didn't break a leg doing so.

"You really know me well already," he commented.

Given that the moon was bright in this night, the darkness had a hard time concealing the blush that formed on Judai's face with that reply. He turned his head to the shadowy side, hoping that Johan wouldn't notice it that way. This situation wasn't certainly helping the worries that Fubuki wanted him to reveal earlier. He wanted something, anything, to divert his attention from this right now. Luckily, his eyes landed on the musical instrument clutched on the bluenette's right hand.

"Johan, since when were you able to play?"

"Hm?" The Reverse Fuser seemed surprised by the sudden question but decided to answer anyway. "I don't really know. I've already told you I was found when I was seven, right? As far as I can remember, I've always had this flute, even before I started living in the orphanage. I don't know how I got it though. It feels mysterious, actually."

"Why?"

"Because I was able to play it before I even started learning musical notes in our local school. Somehow, when I want to play, my fingers just move on their own accord, as if they know the song. It's a little hard to explain... It's like there's a voice within me who tells them how to move. I know it's a little hard to believe too, but that's really how it is."

"The flute itself feels magical, to tell the truth," he added. "See, it's pure white and has seven holes. It's night time so you won't be able to see, but, during the day, when the flute's hit by sunlight, it actually shines like a rainbow. It's weird but I think it's cool," Johan said as he smiled sincerely.

The brunette gulped when he saw the smile directed at him, and he suddenly lowered his head so that his bangs covered his eyes.

Johan tilted his head, confused. "Judai, is something wro—"

He was cut off when the brunette suddenly grabbed his arm and pulled him. His head bumped into Judai's chest, and his face was buried into the black shirt, as the Tamer's other arm wrapped around his back, further drawing him closer to the taller teen's body. The hand that originally had an iron grip on his arm let go and moved to the back of his head, fingers evident of a skilled fighter buried themselves surprisingly clumsily and hurriedly in untamed blue hair that the night was trying to paint black.

'_...!'_

At first he was surprised by the sudden action, but when he realized that the act was a _hug_, the strange sensation that was building up in the last two months immediately made itself known again, much more pronounced than before, and he felt his face turn scarlet.

Judai was... hugging him?

His heart thumped loudly in his chest, while his mind was a mush of fuzziness at the moment. He also felt a strange tingling in his body, travelling from his heart and to his whole body up to the tips of his fingers, making him shiver. He felt frozen, stuck in the moment from shock.

This close contact enabled Judai's warmth to seep into his body, like heat waves from a bright and undying flame. It completely and utterly burned away the natural coldness that was biting him to return to reality.

His ears were ringing, and the nightly sounds seemed so far away. He faintly felt his flute clatter to the grass with a soft thump, his hand feeling too weak by the astonishment to remain clutching to it.

He could definitely breathe in Judai's scent, a piece of information that only served to intensify the redness of his cheeks and the beating of his heart, and it certainly didn't help in his attempt to get his mind to be more coherent.

Why was this happening? This wasn't the first time he made body contact with Judai. When they first met, he held Judai's hand. When he saved the brunette from death the first time he did a Dimension Crossing, he was also holding him. All the previous times before this, any touch just felt normal, a friendly deed. They were best friends, after all.

So... why?

What was with this particular moment and action that made it so... different, and somehow, more blissful?

He closed his eyes, not daring to move his head from where it was. For some reason, he couldn't bear to look at Judai's face now, slightly afraid that the answer to this sudden strange act was in there, and it was something he wasn't prepared to know.

But one thing he was sure of: right now, standing in this moonlit night nestled in Judai's arms, he felt like he was in the safest place in the entire world.

The feeling of heaven didn't last long as Judai suddenly tensed, as if he just realized what exactly he had done. The Tamer's arms quickly let go, as if electrified. He hastily backed away a few paces from Johan, who was completely bewildered and felt a bit distressed that the sudden release seemed like the brunette was repulsed. "Judai...?"

The brown-haired teen raised his head a little, allowing the moonlight to shine on his face, and enabling Johan to see the confused, and somehow, terrified, amber orbs looking directly at him. Johan froze.

After a while, Judai yelled in a panicked voice:

"I'm sorry!"

And before Johan could say or do anything, Judai turned back and ran away, not even looking back.

The bluenette felt dread in his heart as he watched his best friend go. The air felt so heavy and he couldn't get the energy to move and go after him. He wanted to know why Judai did that but after seeing those brown eyes...

He just couldn't.

Furthermore, what exactly was Judai sorry for? It wasn't like he did anything bad, did he? He just...

'_...hugged me.'_

And that thought just sent Johan's heart beating faster.

Was that something normal friends did? And even if it was, was it normal to feel a strange pounding in your chest when your friend did it to you?

Then was that why Judai apologized? Because he did something friends normally didn't do?

As Judai ran farther away, Johan was getting the terrible feeling of something breaking.

Was it his heart?

Or was it their friendship?

**To be continued...**

**

* * *

**

Oh no, cliffhanger? D:

Hey, if you're confused about what happened to Judai and Johan, maybe you can relate it to this: _'There are times when the transition of friendship to love can be harsh, and difficult to accept when you realize it.'_

Hah, I come up with the strangest quotes for some reason...

Chapter Notes:

-Jim Crocodile Cook: He's a fifth-year in this fic. While his meeting with Johan seemed random, he has a prominent role in this story which I will explain... later. :p

-Manjyome as an Electricity Elementist: I bet this fact came out of left field to most of you! xD Maybe you expected him to be an Equipper because of VtoZ? This in itself has a deeper story than it seems, not only because his nickname is Thunder, and that in Episode 111 he summoned thunder to destroy his computer monitor just because Google (or was it yahoo?) wouldn't give him info about Amon Garam. xD

His back story would have an impact on our two main protagonists. Actually, it's not just him; even the rest of the characters' stories will affect the relationship between Judai and Johan, both positively and negatively. Because hey, just because this fic is Spiritshipping does not mean that the minor characters should be shoved to the closet. I am slowly introducing them, before I start delving into their histories in the latter chapters.

-Tenjoin siblings being Ice-users: This is a reference to manga Asuka, who uses an Ice deck unlike the anime version's Cyber Sporty Girl deck. One of her Ice deck cards is 'Frigid Ice Pillars', the attack she used in this chapter.

As for Fubuki, it's a play on his title of 'Blizzard Prince'. Feedback on my portrayal and introduction of him in this chapter would be helpful.

And since they are siblings who are famous in the Academia (be it this version or the anime's), I modified Asuka's title of 'Queen of the Obelisk Dorm' to 'Ice Queen'. Very fitting and ironic at the same time, I think. Why? Because Fubuki's older yet he is 'Prince' while Asuka is 'Queen'. xD Like Manjyome, their story is a plot point but it's not the common scenario of Asuka liking Judai and Johan gets jealous. NO.

-Shou as a Tamer: **Endless Dream**'s reasoning is the same as mine. :D

Ah, this chapter appears to be the starting line of non-friendship Spiritshipping. And Johan's having some very dangerous thoughts D: But really, given how he is, he's bound to think that way. He is the type to be _beside _Judai, after all ;) This way of thinking is vital to the plot, so note that in your predictions of this story.

So what did you think of the detailed show of Johan's ability? As for the Duel Energy activation, I got the idea from the third season, where the orange blobs floated in that capsule Cobra made.

More characters will be introduced in the next chapter, along with the in-depth narration on the turmoil of emotions that Judai and Johan are experiencing. Be on the watch about the Dark Army as well, Mad King and Scout did say something ominous...

Next chapter preview (some bits):

_Why was it that being with Judai now seemed awkward, unlike before when it felt so comfortable?_

_And now it seemed that this current turn of confusing events affected his ability._

"_He told me he was skipping class today."_

"_I never thought this fact would be vital, but I guess I'll say it now: Your heart has the greatest influence on your magic, more so than your mind and your body."_

Review if you please. All comments and suggestions are appreciated.

~Rine-Line


	5. Twisted Mirror

After quite a long wait, here is the fifth chapter!

Unsurprisingly, classes have started for me, and that means less time on the internet. My course is rather hard so I need to study more than usual. My major is Chemistry but this year, I also have Physics and Calculus and they are no easy matter. And there are two weekdays wherein my classes are till 7 pm, and I'd be too tired to type by then. But fear not, I don't plan to leave you all hanging regarding this story... too much. xD

I'll update but it'll take longer than usual. If back then I can update in a week, this time I cannot. The earliest you'll see an update is around two weeks. Well, my chapters are long, so an update won't leave you unsatisfied in regards to length. I might post a random one-shot when I have time.

However, you can catch me on my Livejournal account, where I'll be posting the progress of the next chapter, as well as a gauge of how busy I currently am. Furthermore, I'll be posting some behind-the-scenes of some of my stories in there, so if you think it's worth a visit, you are free to do so. Also, I'll be able to chat with you in there much more freely if you introduce yourself in there and post or friend me. xD

A lot of you said that the reason for Johan's powers going wonky was clear. Such amusing theories you have, people. xD But hold onto your patience hats and speculation glasses. There's more to come.

Oh, here's a reply to **Endless Dream** again. I have not received anonymous reviews from anyone else so...: Oh Lord, whoever you are, I have a feeling you might be psychic. xD Your review of the chapter was right-on, you were able to pick up even the hidden messages in the chapter that I intended. Not to mention, even the ongoing plot holes that I have yet to explain and provide answers to, such as Johan's dependency and Judai being emotionally unstable. Regarding the vile desire for power thing, that is how Johan in his situation would see it, I think. He came from a peaceful life, after all, and like you said, a fighter's way of thinking is very different. As for Judai and his emotions, I hinted quite a lot about that in the second chapter.

Hm, is figuring Johan's past out a challenge? *grin* Okay, then, let's see if you can figure it out.

I have expounded more on the Dark Army-Rainbow Kingdom situation in this chapter, and I think your opinion would probably change after this. Whee, guessing. xD You got some right again. Ehehe, but that's the fun, right? Keep it up! And don't worry about the lengthy reviews, I learn a lot from them (in fact, I consider some of them as CC) and it means that you really read the chapter from top to bottom. Long reviews also inspire me to write long chapters!

I'd like to say a big thank you to all who have reviewed and read the fic so far. Now I won't keep you waiting any longer, it's been two weeks after all. I hope you enjoy!

* * *

**Fusion Hearts**

**Chapter 5: Twisted Mirror**

'_Absence makes the heart grow fonder.' – Thomas Haynes Bayly_

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* * *

_

"Good morning, Johan."

The Reverse Fuser returned the greeting as he sat down with the rest of the gang in their usual table. After two months, he'd more or less gotten used to the campus, and could now manage to get to the cafeteria by himself, although not as fast as he would have liked.

Almost immediately, he felt the difference in the atmosphere of the breakfast table. "Where's Judai?"

Shou looked worried when the question was asked. "He told me he was skipping class today."

"He what?" Johan was shocked. The other people at the table wore similar expressions. "He's skipping class?"

After that question by Johan, the other four turned their surprised faces to him instead. "Wh-what is it?" He asked, countering them with his own curiosity.

Misawa coughed. "Eh, you see... What we were surprised about wasn't the fact that Judai was skipping class. He does that often, and we're used to it. Although it is weird that he hadn't done so in the last two months... But anyway, the surprising thing is he _told _Shou about it."

"Uhh..." Misawa did have a point. It would have been logical for Judai to just sneak away and not tell anybody if he was just going to skip class. But then, Johan thought, Judai was one to defy and rise above the expectations, even in a simple situation like this.

Manjyome poked then mashed his food with his chopstick. "Well, if that slacker wants to skip out, fine, let him be. It just means we won't work our asses off trying to find where he went. He still has enough sense not to leave the campus again, so if he wants to _avoid _us all again, we'll take it out on him when he comes back."

The angry way that he said that, along with the strange emphasis on the word avoid, made Johan remember the almost-surreal previous night. After Judai left, he miraculously was able to make it back to his dorm room despite his mind being in a tumultuous storm of questions and emotions. The waves of why's kept on moving towards the surface of his mind, but not retreating, for there was no towing force to pull them back to the darker recesses of his mind in which case he would not worry about them or forget them.

He wanted to know why...

Why Judai clung to him like a lifeline that night.

Why his heart was shaken by emotions he was not sure of.

And why, right now, the notion of Judai avoiding him was making him feel like a knife was thrust deeply into the very core of his soul, the silver blade rained on by trickling tears he could not bring himself to shed.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"It's rare for you to be casually reading in the library."

Fujiwara looked up from the book he was reading to the owner of that seemingly teasing voice. He replied nonchalantly, "You know that's not true, Fubuki."

"Ah, you're right. The book you're reading is also for research. Of course, I knew that from the start," the sing-song voice of the Elementist never faltered. "But that's a really odd book to be reading for your assignment. I didn't know you were into _fairy tales_."

The Fuser rolled his eyes. "It's myths. _Folk tales_. Old, forgotten stories of the Rainbow Kingdom. Have you not been looking at the book's cover?"

"Of course I was, even though your fingers block a few letters. But it's really fun poking at you while you work."

"I noticed," Fujiwara replied dryly, though there were no hard feelings in it. Truth be told, he'd discerned it a long time ago, since becoming close friends with the cheerful teen during their first year. Over time he'd gotten used to his presence, and didn't mind when Fubuki inadvertently (or not) interrupted him when he was immersed in studying.

The problem with him when he was busy with research is that he tended to forget about other things, like eating and sleeping for instance, and would only do so when the bodily need arose for it. A comical trait it may be, but he didn't have much control over it. And that's why he was grateful deep inside for Fubuki making an effort to pull him out.

Fubuki was that kind of person, after all. He worries about everyone, feels pained when they do, yet he also takes it upon himself to cheer them up, even if through a teasing route.

'_Why does he go out of his way to help his friends even if there's nothing in it for him?'_

"Anyway..." The mischievous grin on Fubuki's face faded into a normal smile. "Whose case is related to what you're reading?"

"Johan Andersen." The reply came before a faint gasp of shock that escaped Fujiwara's lips.

Fubuki tilted his head, curious, and walked nearer so that the book's pages were within his view. But Fujiwara made it easier for him by laying the book wide open on the table. "What is it?"

The Fuser's eyes looked serious as he scrutinized the spread pages. "This story is weird..." He murmured.

"Huh? What?" Fubuki asked, looking back and forth between his friend's solemn face and the open pages that contained only a few lines of text. Well, that was certainly odd but why was Fujiwara seemingly worried about it as well?

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It was easy to get used to living in deep underground. The darkness didn't hamper much, other than the occasional clumsy grunt tripping on his feet. The torch lights provided just enough light so Scout wondered why some of the stupider members complained that they couldn't see where they were going.

He was smoothening out his battle cloak, preparing himself for another one of his 'missions', when he was interrupted by someone he really didn't need to talk to at the moment.

"You've got another mission tonight, Scout?"

The Inductor merely narrowed his ominously glowing-in-the-dark green eyes in distaste at the newcomer. He really wished he could use authority to drive the other man away but unfortunately they were of the same rank.

'_He really is a MAD King to appoint this brawny fool as one of the Eight Fiends...'_

"Tch. Why is it that you get to do all the flashy work? Those should have been appointed to me, 'Vanguard'. The frontrunner," continued the grey-haired man looking angrily at the Inductor.

Scout ignored him in favour of fixing his cloak and checking that his cards were there where he kept them tucked underneath his cloak. Thankfully, he was spared of more envious comments by Vanguard with the arrival of one of the more intelligent same-ranked magicians as him. No wait, this newcomer was actually the smartest of all of them.

It was a very tall and imposing bald man. His green eyes were calculative, seemingly emotionless. A black cloak concealed most of his body except his head, as the hood hang on his back. He spoke calmly, "You have the wrong notion about your name and Scout's, Vanguard. There is a clear difference between them that apparently your brain cannot comprehend. However, it's not only the fact that you're both Inductors yet Scout has some smarts and you don't."

"What did you say, Tactician?" Vanguard's voice arose in anger over the insult, emanating an aura of murderous intent, despite the fact that they were fellow generals in the organization. He tried to punch the taller man, who sidestepped it easily, and the fist made contact with the wall instead. There was no denying that this Vanguard guy was powerful, because the crater of the impact was quite large, and he didn't even do any enhancing magic that Inductors use to cause damage at that scale.

However, Tactician was not the least bit perturbed at the threatening air. He continued talking in the same composed manner as before, his voice not even faltering from fear or worry. "You are correct in the assumption that Vanguard means the front line, or in your case, the person who is at the lead. But that's only if the intent is a full head-on attack."

"Just because his name is Mad King doesn't mean he's insanely stupid. The mission he sends Scout on is not to directly assail the soldiers."

Scout merely remained silent and let Tactician go on with fleshing out more the stupidity of brawn-over-brains Vanguard in a discreet fashion with his explaining. _'Hmph. He's not Tactician for nothing if he can at least discern Mad King's seemingly random orders. I only know of the purpose of my job because Mad King's mission for me was described to the smallest detail...'_

"Why do you think Scout is still here? If he were like you, he should have died now, because forerunners in an army aim to kill as many people as possible, even at the cost of their death, in order to make it easier for the remaining soldiers to break through the enemy's ranks with lesser opposition."

The flames lighting the cave flickered, as if in unison with the slight narrowing of Tactician's eyes. "Scout, like his name implies, is merely there to collect information. Thus, he has to return alive to relay that information. He doesn't kill anyone, only defeats them if they get on his way. His aim is not to take down his opponent so he's been holding back all this time..." The unruffled gaze turned to Scout who met it with his own cool stare. "... Did I get it correctly?"

Scout merely shrugged and covered his head with his hood as he turned his back to the two. "Say whatever you want of my mission, Tactician. It won't change what I have to do. And Vanguard... there are things that can be accomplished without going at full power. Heh, what am I doing, giving advice? This probably isn't my day..."

And he took off into the night.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

A few days passed and Judai still did not attend classes. While the people around him treated this a normal occurrence, Johan could not help but be worried.

'_Was he really that affected by what he did that night?'_

At that thought, he felt a stab in his heart again.

'_And... I'm affected too.'_

He closed his eyes and laid the back of his palm over them, as he remembered the mishaps that happened to him over the past few days.

In Lecture class, he'd been caught spaced out more than once. Lucky for him, it wasn't enough to warrant a detention because he wasn't sleeping, unlike a certain Tamer who had no qualms about doing it, being so carefree.

His friends have noticed his contemplative and anxious change in behaviour as well. He didn't think they would notice it so easily; but then, they were the first circle of friends he had, after all.

But the worst problem he had at the moment involved his powers.

Johan sighed, feeling even more downcast as he recalled those troubling details. There was something weird going on with his ability. While the normal activation of Duel Energy was just fine, the Dimension Crossing was not. Because now...

'_I can't create portals.'_

This terrible fact made itself known two days after Judai did his disappearing act. During the practical with Fujiwara on that day...

~0~0~

_Johan closed his eyes like usual, visualizing the place Fujiwara wanted him to travel to using his ability. He was used to this; he'd been doing it for a little over two months, after all. And while he hadn't reached the point of complete success yet, this was still practice that would lead him closer to that goal._

_However, he had barely begun visualizing the destination when a bolt of pain shot across his senses. The sheer shock and pain from it sent him collapsing on his knees on the ground. His portal didn't even manage to begin the building process._

"_Johan!" Fujiwara went over to the fallen magician. "What happened? Are you all right?"_

"_I... I'm fine..." The bluenette replied shakily. He managed to sit up properly, though with difficulty. It no longer hurt, but the after-effects of shock still lingered. His eyesight was blurring left and right, and he blinked a few times to get focus back. What just happened?_

_If he were to put in a mental picture analogy, it was like he was trying to cross a bridge and yet there was some force preventing him from taking a step forward._

~0~0~

And for all his attempts that followed afterward, every single one of them was a failure. He could not get past the visualizing stage, for that bolt of pain would always come and put to zero any effort he has done before it. It was something that both frustrated and confused him. The disappointment was obvious, after all, it was the only magic power he knew at the moment, and while Fujiwara had taught him a few things that could make Dimension Crossing useful in battle which he'd slowly been learning, the fact that he was unable to do that now made him feel less as a magician.

As for the confusion, well, he could not think of any reason for the sudden appearance of that force that was stopping him from using his powers. Having been assured by Fujiwara that it was not an outside force, given that there was nobody near them, and no Card Summoning magician in the school was capable of internal interference magic, or any magic with seemingly no outside proof. The older Fuser did have a point, as the magic was kind of showy and they would have noticed right away if there was someone nearby casting magic, and he didn't have any visible body injuries.

... But what? What exactly was this stopping power?

Fujiwara also said something that, while related to his quest to answer the previous question, also made him question more some particular feelings that weren't helping him calm down about the issue.

"_I never thought this fact would be vital, but I guess I'll say it now: Your heart has the greatest influence on your magic, more so than your mind and your body."_

The fifth-year told him this just yesterday while they took a break from practicing and trying to get his Dimension Crossing working again. Johan was at first surprised by it, because with the way Fujiwara said it, it was like he was worried about his junior. He got the impression ever since they met that Fujiwara was a silent type of person, who does things because they benefit him, though not in a very evil way. He did say that he was teaching Johan because it was vital to his research. But it seemed he was not a completely cruel and heartless person, a fact that cheered Johan up, though not enough to tip the balance on his worries.

So his current dilemma regarding his magic was caused by something nagging at his heart? If one were to look at it, it seemed so impossible. Magic was just a force that can perform deeds beyond human reach, wasn't it? It was not a living thing, though it had a definite order, so what controlled it was the caster's mind. The body's capacity was an obvious factor in affecting magic ability. A magician who has run out of Duel Energy would collapse.

So if his ability was largely affected by his heart, did that mean... his magic was alive?

It sounded so out-of-this-world, but given the unpredictability and lack of information regarding his Dimension Crossing, in the words of Fujiwara, 'No theory can be disregarded, no matter how impossible it may seem.'

He'd rather not question how his heart affected his power for now. What bothered him was the possible reason for it.

The current situation between him and Judai.

At least a week has passed and he still could not forget that fateful night. Even if his mind might forget in time, his body would always recall the pleasantly warm sensation that lingered under the cold night. It's not like he'd never been hugged before, all the orphan kids and his foster parents did it all the time. But there was something different about the way Judai pulled their bodies close together. It was not of the familial sort, that he was sure of. There was desperation in that hug that Johan could not pinpoint the reason why. It was apparent that Judai didn't do it on purpose, if that shocked face of his when he let go was anything to go by. So was it a spur-of-the-moment thing?

But that night wasn't the end of it.

In the days that followed afterward, Judai only went to class on occasion. But he'd always have a melancholic look on his face when he did, and was obviously bothered by something as well. The worst part about it is that he no longer sat beside Johan. In fact, he seemed to be avoiding Johan in general. It had become obvious because he still talked to Shou and the others in casual chatter, while he won't even say hello to the Fuser. In the times Johan overheard them, he would hear Judai say he's just fine, even if they asked him to tell what's wrong. Whenever the two of them made eye contact by accident, it was Judai who'd always look away first. He looked like he wanted to say something but couldn't, or maybe chose not to.

Everyone else seemed to have noticed this sudden change in atmosphere between the two of them, who were obviously best friends just days ago. Lots of worried and curious questions were directed at him, but he could not give a proper answer because even he himself didn't know why. He and Judai never fought or even had a quarrel from the start; he had no recollection of that ever happening even if he were to include that mysterious night, despite the fact that it seemed that way with the way Judai was acting. However, everyone seemed to drop the idea that they had an argument, when Judai himself declared so.

In conclusion, no one knew of the reason for these strange happenings, except Judai himself.

And Johan couldn't deny that it hurt him so much. Just days, heck, even months ago, everything was fine and happy. Now it was a confusing mess he had no idea of a solution for. He could only endure the loneliness with this shunning treatment Judai was giving him.

He was not completely abandoned, per se; Asuka and the rest of the gang still went with him to classes and meal times. The dinner table seemed so tense when all six of them were there. Judai seemed to really be avoiding eye contact with him, and sometimes, he himself would do the same.

Why was it that being with Judai now seemed awkward, unlike before when it felt so comfortable?

Judai avoiding him everyday hurt so much. But the emotional separation with Judai was a different matter altogether. It was a loneliness—

_... That felt similar to sitting alone at the side of the street, the snow falling down. So cold... So lonely..._

Johan involuntarily shivered. Did he do something wrong to feel like this again...? He shook his head. He shouldn't think about the past now.

'_In just one night, everything's changed...'_

Indeed, it has. It all started with that night, the moment Judai closed the gap between them. Yet now, the Tamer seemed afraid to explain why he did that, or to face the reality that yes, he did do something shocking like that.

But the problem was not all about Judai. This was not a one-sided situation. Johan realized this over the days as well: Since when did he start thinking about Judai so much?

At first, he thought it was just related to the strain in their friendship at the moment, but it had a bigger scope than that. He didn't worry about their friendship all the time, and in those times of lull, he'd still think of the brunette, perhaps on a fonder note than was normal. If back then, he was awed by Judai's magic powers, now he was mesmerized by the brunette's physical qualities. He couldn't focus on his studies much like before; he'd get distracted because even some simple things reminded him of Judai: his caring smile, his shining eyes, his warmth...

Oh, there went his train of thoughts again. He really needed to do something about it, but there was nothing he could do to stop it. Was this normal? He'd become aware of the light blush on his face and the heat he felt whenever he thought of Judai in that perspective. It would not go away, and surprisingly, was increasing by the day.

In fact, this other revelation was the reason why he could _not _hate Judai despite the fact that he was avoiding him right now. He felt sad, but strangely enough he did not feel any loathing for Judai.

Johan sighed again. So many complications... There really was no going back to a peaceful life.

It's as if his emotions weren't in turmoil enough as it is, ever since he first locked gazes with Judai at the Gem Spring. And now it seemed that this current turn of confusing events affected his ability.

What's going to happen now?

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Scout of the Dark Army cursed under his breath as he gruffly entered his quarters in the underground cave, which was nothing more than a large unrefined carved hole in the solid rock. It was neither spacious nor narrow, and fit enough for one person. Well, he was lucky to be one of the higher-ranking officials, because that meant he didn't have to share his room with some messy idiot.

He'd just come back from his 'mission', and he'd be damn lying if he said it was easy.

Truthfully, none of them were, for every single one of them involved him risking his life on the line. It was to 'survive every battle with your opponent and return with information on them'. Sometimes, he wondered which one was the easier part, or if they were both just insanely hard.

Rumours always exaggerated, because that was their purpose: to give a false sense of hope and security, or even fear. He certainly did not get out of his missions unscathed, all the more for the Equippers he brought along with him, who were nearly killed in more than one occasion. The four fools were just lucky. And he certainly did not always beat the crap out of the Rainbow Kingdom soldiers.

The same can be said for the other side. Indeed, the kingdom's army had their losses but that was long ago, when the Dark Army had the element of surprise. Back then, they weren't taken too seriously, and treated as just a band of common troublemakers. However, when the flashy activity which was mostly done by him surfaced, the Dark Army was now considered a threat, and better soldiers and magicians were sent to guard and fight against him. Battles were now harder, and the occasions wherein he had to fight to _survive_, rather than fight to collect battle data, were increasing.

This meant that both fighting sides were currently in stalemate. But of course, only he knew that, because it was only him who went to the battlefield. Some of the other members of the Dark Army had grown overconfident, and he believed them gullible for believing the town gossip (Like a certain Inductor). There was an underlying foreboding feeling in him that this could very well lead to their downfall.

However, being in a deadlock meant that the balance could easily shift to one side should they choose to go on an all-out attack. However, neither were making an inclination to do so for now, which meant both sides were being careful. But he believed that these little skirmishes wouldn't stay for long, and pretty soon, someone will make a major move.

But that was the price to pay if they wanted to be known as more than just a regular bad group. Mad King wanted his organization to be known, for their name to be able to instil fear in people's hearts by just hearing it, or whispering it.

At least this part of his mission, or to be more cruel yet specific, purpose, was clear to him. Even so, he could still not understand what went through Mad King's head.

To be precise, the reason why he wanted that kid.

The Tamer was quite powerful for a seventeen-year-old, he had witnessed so himself in that mission months ago. However, he wasn't _that _powerful. In fact, he knew of greater magicians than the kid in terms of power, even some from the Academia itself. So he concluded that Mad King probably wanted the kid for his ability, not sheer power.

His ability to fuse his monsters was unique, yes, but from what he had seen in the battle, the brunette could seemingly fuse only his monsters and only two of them at a single time.

_If _their aim was really to take over the throne of the current king, then they needed raw power, not some strange skill. That was what Mad King told most members to convince them to join. But wasn't it logical to need power to do that? The reason the kid fused his monsters was because their individual powers weren't enough to defeat his opponent, and fusing would make them stronger. If it was only great power they needed, shouldn't they just aim for a magician with an already strong monster?

This was what nagged his curiosity.

Back two months ago, their spies had seen the kid leave the Academia himself, sneaking out at dawn. He fused two of his monsters to destroy a small portion of the school's barrier, enough for him to slip through, though he did take quite a while with this task. That was an achievement in itself for someone his age because the barrier was quite tough.

Not to say that the Dark Army could do the same, it's just that it will take quite some time if they were to do so, and by the time they have penetrated the barrier, the other side full of battle-ready magicians will await them, so they have not taken the risk yet and bid their time.

Someone was sent to tail him, but the kid didn't notice (either that, or he just didn't care if he was followed). The Tamer made a quick trip to his old house in Sapphire City, perhaps relieving the painful memories in the empty building. After that, he went out and walked around seemingly aimlessly, and by chance ended up at Ruby Village.

When he appeared to have stayed overnight at an orphanage, this information was sent back to headquarters and to Mad King. Then the leader gave him a very strange order.

'_Go to where the boy is and find out if he still has the ability to fuse his monsters. The trauma Knight gave him might have rendered him incapable of doing so, and if that is so, use any means possible except killing him to get him to do so again. You do not have to necessarily capture him now, but if you feel like doing so, go ahead. Just make sure he can use Fusion.'_

Odd as it was, he still followed anyway. But that was the first time he was sent to confront the kid. This task was originally assigned to Knight, who appeared to have been inactive recently (and he didn't really care to find out where the leader of the Eight Fiends went to).

He wondered why Knight was never successful in his assignment, but after fighting the young Tamer himself, he understood. The kid might not be the greatest when it came to power but there was really something different about him, and it was not just his Fusion ability, but as a magician in general. As it turned out, he didn't need to do anything to make the kid fuse, he did it by himself, and apparently, Knight didn't give him _that _much trauma. Mad King was just being a worrywart.

In truth, he intended to capture the kid as well, but after feeling the power of the teen himself, decided it wasn't the time. It was also then that he understood why Mad King was biding his time, and wanted to gather information about their enemies first.

And then, there was that other kid. He wasn't as worrying as the Tamer, but it was another unique ability that Mad King surprisingly was interested in as well. He didn't really expect that, but since no one knew how the leader thought, almost everything he said was a surprise. Truthfully, it was a gamble on his part. He might have told them that Mad King would be interested in that strange teleporting power, but it was a 50-50 chance.

With all these 'lucky' streaks, he had a feeling it might run out soon. But then he knew not to rely on luck, for it wasn't always going to bail him out.

But back to the matter with Mad King... His plans must be more complex than to simply take over the kingdom.

What exactly he wanted, Scout had no idea. But one thing was for certain: Mad King needed the strange abilities of the two boys.

The power to fuse and the power from a strange and unknown yet seemingly potent monster...

What was Mad King's intention?

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Headmaster Samejima, this is Daitokuji. May I come in?" the black-haired man said as he knocked on an ornately-decorated door.

Once he got his confirmation, he grasped the doorknob and went in, quietly closing the door behind him. The principal of the Academia was a bald man in his mid-forties with kind gray eyes. He was seated in the middle of the room, with a huge glass window behind him that spilled sunlight onto his wide desk that was laden with piles of papers. He put down his pen as he greeted the Elementist professor. "Ah, Daitokuji-sensei. What brings you to my office so early in the morning? Is something the matter?" His tone changed from casual to worry.

"Ah, Headmaster, there is nothing wrong with the students-nya. Just one in particular."

"Hm?" The head of the school seemed intrigued.

Daitokuji adjusted his glasses. "It's Johan Andersen-kun. I've been told that recently he's been unable to use his magic."

"Really?" Samejima looked serious as he crossed his arms. "Is the cause for this unknown?"

"I've assigned this to Fujiwara Yusuke-kun, and he says he has a theory. However, he has yet to confirm it-nya. There has never been a case like this before, but I suppose it has something to do with him using magic directly from his body."

The headmaster frowned. "I see your point. But I think there is a way for him to be able to do so again. In any case, that I leave in your and Fujiwara-kun's hands. I fear that I have a bigger concern on hand right now."

"All right, then, Headmaster. But, what is this problem you speak of?"

Samejima looked solemn. "It's the school's barrier. It has grown weaker."

This revelation completely shocked the Elementist. "But... How is that possible-nya? I know that you aren't really the one maintaining it but..." He trailed off.

"Yes, you're right. Actually, only a select few people know that fact, you included. The rumours that I'm the one who created that barrier are essential for the Dark Army to hesitate attacking the school. This barrier that can shield from both physical and magical attacks is impossible to do with our current usage of magic. It's an ancient spell casted during the time when magic wasn't limited to cards yet. The barrier has a power source of its own but it has weakened over time. Young Yuki Judai-kun's penetration of the barrier months ago certainly didn't help in the barrier's survival."

The old man sighed. "The barrier's magic structure is quite different from the card magic we use; however, it is still affected by Duel Energy. If I send my Duel Energy into it periodically, it is able to retain its strength. But this is not permanent. If a strong force were to try to penetrate it again, I don't think the barrier will hold. When I think about it, the barrier is somehow similar to Johan-kun's magic ability. It is not maintained by a card, yet it can be activated or supported by Duel Energy."

Daitokuji listened and took in all of this information while forming some opinions about it on his own.

"We need to be more careful and alert then-nya."

"Yes... if we want Judai-kun to be the last student to fall victim to the Dark Army's cruelty."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The whole area was bright. The ground and the sky were just waves of continuously moving bands of light in a wave-like movement, like the rippling of the waves in the ocean. One glance is all it took for anyone to recognize the light as rainbow-coloured. For every movement, one colour seemed to surface beyond the others, much brighter, before fading into the next one. The blending of colours gave the feel of a mirage, a living yet serene aura.

There was the sound of hooves clicking on solid marble.

"The Lord has awakened."

It was spoken with a deep tone, one that exuded authority.

A soft humming sound, but full of hints of deep thinking came from another. A purposeful tap of a flipper, similar to how a wooden staff of a wise old man would, resonated.

"If he has, that means his long rest is over, Saphiro."

This voice was reminiscent of one who has carried with him the wisdom of long years of experience.

Another sound cut through the air, that of sharp claws emerging in readiness.

"And so has our wait," a lady's voice commented. However, despite the femininity, there were no traces of weakness and demureness in it. It was an accent of a proud warrior prepared to protect.

The environment's colouring slowly turned from a bright emerald to a cool azure, giving the illusion that the three conversers were talking in deep underwater, without the living organisms and the stationary rocks. This strangely gave the first speaker more of an imposing air, as if flaunting him with their blue hue. "Indeed. But unless the Lord comes out and calls for us himself, we have neither power nor authority to act."

Incredulity crept into the only woman's previously confident voice. "You mean we are to wait until it is too late for humanity?"

"Methys, calm down. I did not mean it in that manner. I meant for us to be cautious. While it is true that in the Lord and ours' existence we have protected them more times than we could count, the current predicament is one that we have never come across before. You do still remember the reason for the Lord having to remain dormant for ten years merged, do you?"

The other man voiced his opinion. "I thought that the Lord did that to recover."

"Yes, he did. But there is another reason."

"And that is?" prompted Methys.

Saphiro's voice was grave. "This enemy is not one we can beat with just the Lord and ourselves, unlike before."

"That is why the Lord did as he had."

A loud rustle as magnificent wings spread wide.

"Even if it would make him vulnerable."

Hoof beats echoed in unison with the heavy words.

"Even if it meant his majestic powers can be affected by delicate human emotions."

**To be continued...**

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* * *

**

In actuality, this chapter is shorter compared to the previous ones. It might not seem that way at first because of the long paragraphs but it really is. It was mostly Johan and Scout POV, with a few more characters introduced or fleshed out.

This was more of a situation prospect chapter, regarding the two important events of this story: Judai and Johan's relationship, and the battle of the Dark Army. The first one I showed with Johan's thoughts, the latter with Scout's opinions. While it might seem boring, their POVs set up the foundations of the current situation which will escalate much faster than you would think in the latter chapters. We have the current tension between our two protagonists which certainly affects their emotions, the weakening of the barrier which could potentially be a source of danger in the future, hinting more on the war between magicians, and finally, the last scene, which I'm pretty sure many of you could make a good guess about.

At the same time, I also ventured on Fubuki and Fujiwara, in particular the Fujiwara who wonders about friendship and the jazz. And uh... No Judai and the rest of the gang much in here but I assure you there'll be a lot of them later. Johan owned this chapter. I blame the icons I have of him on my LJ, and just about all the screencaps I've saved in my laptop of the Spiritshipping episodes. xD Drop by my LJ if you have time! Heehee.

And so we have more Judai and a grave situation for Johan in the next chapter. Um... Do I look like I'm being a little mean to Johan? *hides* But I love him, really!

Next chapter preview (I'm feeling a little evil with this so I'm only giving you this one line which actually tells a lot):

'_Judai... Do you hate me?'_

Review if you please. All comments and suggestions are appreciated.

~Rine-Line


	6. The Price of a Wish

Hi, Rine-Line here! Giving you... chapter number six!

Yes, I know many of you are confused or perhaps frustrated as to why this update took almost a whole month. Actually, something extremely bad and hectic happened to me at school but that's a long story that you'll be able to find in my LJ.

But not everything has been cruel to me. I've now got a new pet puppy. He's quite a playful one and he's coloured white with brown patches. And... Guess what, his name is Hero! Of course, after GX's cheerful protagonist!

Quick reply to anon comment by **Endless Dream **again: Eh, I hope the pressure isn't too much. xD Ah, I do have the tendency to give mental damage to the characters. Writing Vanguard was actually funny, but Scout was more challenging, really.

Ayah? I never mentioned Sapphire Pegasus, Amethyst Cat or Emerald Turtle in the previous chapter. Their names didn't appear, right? Perhaps you have confused them? *wink*

Pretty good guesses you have there... but I'm not telling! xD And uh, who knows, it really might be Sho! Perhaps you'll see in this chapter.

Ah... Hopefully, this is the longest delay that will happen to this story. For now, in order to make up for the late update, enjoy my longest chapter yet. Be warned though, this chapter is full of sad events, so I guess the length would be the only optimistic thing here...

* * *

**Fusion Hearts**

**Chapter 6: The Price of a Wish**

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* * *

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In only the light of fire, two men clashed with fists of steel and blazing fast kicks in what appeared to be an improvised rocky arena. The power and skill behind each movement from the two awed the spectators who were gathered at the sides covered in the dark cloaks that were slowly gaining the definition of "Dark Army uniform".

One of the sparring men, a golden-yellow haired man with blood-red eyes, lashed out with his right fist, aiming for his opponent's chest. The speed it was thrown was astounding, however, judging by the muscles in his arms, it also packed a lot of power behind it that could very well knock the wind out of any who received it head-on.

But it appeared the other fighter wasn't a weak one, for he evaded it with equally astonishing speed, crouching low, so the missed fist was right above him. Using the pent-up force from his evasive maneuver, he sprang his upper body upwards in a burst, his left fist propped into making its way to the blonde guy's face.

The action appeared to have been anticipated because there was no sign of panic on the seemingly in a disadvantage combatant, who seemed even more pumped up instead, evident in his almost manic expression, and also there was the fact that his left leg was moving towards the punching guy's stomach that was left open by the sudden speedy movement.

Danger senses alerting him of impending defeat, he quickly shifted from offensive to defensive, altering his position to meet the swinging appendage with his own kick, and the two clashed in mid-air. His calm yellow-green eyes met with the fiery red orbs, the battlers' wordless communication. Short silver hair swinging faintly in front of his eyes, he broke the stalemate, taking only a moment to regain his footing and fighting stance, not yet attacking but analyzing his opponent for an opportunity instead.

"They're both Inductors, aren't they?" One spectator whispered to his companion.

"Yeah. Not only that, they're twins. It's said that they've got a really good combination," he whispered back.

"So... the blonde guy is Wu-Lord, and the silver-haired twin is Warlord, right?"

"Right. They're both speedy and powerful, but it's the hasty Wu-Lord who prefers power while Warlord is quick on his feet, and never goes on the offensive unless he's sure. Or so I've heard."

"And despite being so different in battle style, they can still manage to fight as a pair... Man, the Eight Fiends are on a different level."

"You said it. But I still wonder why it's only Scout-sama who goes out. Even I'm getting impatient..."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Why don't you tell Shou?"

Fubuki looked at his blue-haired companion with an expression of curiosity intermingled with an underlying worry.

"It's unnecessary," was the simple but firm reply.

"But Ryou..."

"He may be my brother but I'm not supposed to tell him everything."

Marufuji Ryou, to put it simply, was the opposite of Fubuki. Serious-looking and seemingly uncaring, he was surrounded by an imposing aura that told you you'd be dead if you ever crossed him.

The resemblance between the brothers was unnoticeable, what with the apparent difference between them. Ryou's hair and eyes were of a darker blue shade compared to Shou's. However, both of them were Tamers, as common and customary with Clans.

A Clan was a family of Card Summoners who had a long and distinguished history, and were quite privileged and wealthy. They could be considered the "nobles" of the kingdom. There were several of them, who mostly had mansions and a piece of land, a "territory", within Sapphire City. However, they were also strict in upholding their ancient traditions and the heads of the families always had the final word. At least half of the Card Summoners in the kingdom, most especially those who were skilled or powerful, usually came from a Clan.

In their estates live not only one family but several, a "main" family and "branch" families. The head of the Clan had authority over everyone, and was the representative of the Clan in the Prism Castle. He or she must be a member of the main family. The title is retained by one person only until he dies. In the case that the father or mother of the main family is dead, the title gets passed to their child, not an adult from a branch family. However, the child must be of age to do so. In the event that he isn't, the former head's appointed temporary will take charge until the child is ready to take the responsibility. Only in the very rare case wherein all members of the main family die do adults from the branch family become the head, and their family, in turn, becomes the new main family.

They are very strict in regards to the practice of magic. Each Clan can only be made up of one kind of Card Summoner, and any who refuse to obey this rule were either disowned or banished. Some of the more famous Clans were the Marufuji, Tenjoin and Manjyome.

"This is your life on the line, Ryou!" Fubuki slammed his hands down on the table. "Don't say something like not telling your brother! You haven't even told your Clan about this, only Fujiwara and me. Why can you not—"

The Tamer interrupted with a low but calm voice. "—Then, why do you not tell _your _secret to your sister?"

"That's...!" Fubuki was surprised before turning his head to the side to avoid his companion's scrutinizing stare, his face melancholic. His voice lowered down in volume. "I... I can't tell her. She'll just worry needlessly about me. And they might vent out their frustration and anger toward her if they find out by chance..."

Ryou closed his eyes, contemplative. Maybe being a motherhen ran in the Tenjoin family, he thought.

"Perhaps your reason for doing so is quite close to mine, Fubuki."

"Ryou..."

"This burden of keeping secrets... We accepted them the moment we decided to not act like heirs of Clans."

Fubuki put a hand over his card case. Was there no going back?

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Judai slowly trekked through the mini-forest in the Duel Academia campus, footsteps heavy from the weight of his thoughts and the aching in his heart. It was a different kind of confusion, one he was more uncomfortable and unsure about.

He knew what he had to do in order to not repeat the past, but the responsibility of such a decision was drawing a heavy toll on his heart, such that it was making him doubt if what he was supposed to do was actually _right._

In times like this, he'd learned over the months that it was easier to think about and deal with when he thought of them by himself. He knew that it looked like he was avoiding a certain someone, but if he didn't stop himself, he would end up doing something he would regret. And he no longer wanted that. Once was already too much.

It was early afternoon, sunlight filtering in from the gaps between leaves and branches, shining on the leaf-littered ground. Hands tucked in his pockets, Judai walked past bushes and under creaking branches towards a deeper and quieter part of the area. Much to his surprise, however, he came across someone else in the forest.

It was a young boy, around seven years of age, who had a sleek brown animal in his hands and appeared to be playing with it. He had wild, pointed, short purplish hair. Dressed in loose-fitting clothes in the form of a long-sleeved reddish-orange shirt, cream shorts and brown boots, he looked just like a common child running around the marketplace.

Problem was, the current location was not a market but a forest inside the Duel Academia. Since he was obviously not a student, this meant he had somehow gotten through the barrier.

That realization sent Judai into alert mode, but for some reason he could not. The kid had an aura of innocence and safety. His heart screamed that the boy was harmless and could be trusted. As for breaching the barrier, maybe he never sneaked in at all. He could be related to a teacher, who brought him to campus and had somehow gotten lost in the forest.

Yeah, he could stick to that, Judai thought. But maybe a little confirmation was in order. That could start a casual conversation too.

Walking over to the kid with a small smile despite his troubles, Judai asked, "Are you lost?"

Brilliant red eyes looked up at him as both child and animal stopped in their game. The creature in his arms, a ferret, twitched its whiskers as it looked at Judai with interest. The ferret was coloured brown with one long white streak at each of the sides of its body that ran from head to tail. The younger boy tilted his head to the side, as if mirroring the ferret's stare of curiosity.

Judai didn't know what to make of the situation.

Luckily for him, the weird atmosphere was broken by the child's voice. "No. Are you?"

In literal terms, Judai's reply would be no. But in another sense, then, in a way, yes he was lost—Lost in his thoughts, concerns, and decisions that he could almost drown in them. "Maybe, I am," Judai answered with a light laugh.

The ferret uttered a low cry, to which the child transferred the pet to his shoulder, finally facing Judai fully, and curious expression still in place. Some tiny non-glaring beams of sunlight fell on to the kid's face and for some reason, Judai was getting the illusion that his eyes were sparkling where the light fell, like rubies glittering under the sun.

"Oh..." The kid drawled in his voice, his mouth forming an 'o' in a very childlike way, as if Judai's reply was the clearest understood answer to his simple question.

Then a blue butterfly suddenly passed by, and its dithering flight seemed to distract the boy. He and the ferret on his shoulder both followed the insect's path with their eyes in innocent wonder.

Once again, Judai was left stunned by this. It was just a simple display of a common childhood antic, but this was stirring up memories and emotions inside him.

How long has it been since he was last like that?

"Big Brother, you look sad."

"Eh?" Coffee-coloured eyes widened a fraction from surprise. The child was honestly looking at him worriedly. What?

The purple-haired boy put his hands behind his back. "Did somebody steal your candies?"

'_H-huh? What?' _

Judai's brain was going in circles. Was there anything this kid would do or say that would not baffle him or leave him wondering at the sheer mysticism of it all? He seemed to spout such out-of-the-blue comments. What's more, he could say those seemingly unrelated things with such a straight, serious and honest face. The words seemed so innocent, yet Judai was getting the strange feeling that they referred to something else, something that was not in the literal sense.

Immersed in his wonderings, Judai absent-mindedly murmured, "Yeah. And I can't get them back anymore..."

"If you can no longer get them back, why are you still sad? Don't you have a new candy now?"

Judai closed his fist firmly, so absorbed in his reflections to notice the strangeness of the current conversation. "I do, but... What if the thieves take it again? I don't think I can..."

"So you're just going to leave your candy? You won't take it?"

"I know I have to. But I can't..."

The kid's expression changed into a very determined one, along with the ferret, who sometime during the conversation had climbed into his head, looking as if nesting on a purple nest. Its beady black eyes shone, as it gave a cry. "Then don't leave it! Don't let the bad people take this one too!"

'_Was it as simple as that?'_

"Because you like the candy, right?"

'_Wh-wha—?'_

"And that's all the reason you need!"

Wait a minute. Were they going along the same line of thought now? It's no longer the kid on the literal side and him on the other hidden side? Judai blinked.

The boy suddenly gasped, startling both Judai and the ferret. "Oh no, I'm being called now!"

'_Called?' _But there was nobody around them. Furthermore, the kid was still looking at his direction so he couldn't have just seen somebody, and there wasn't any voice either, just the rustling sounds of the forest.

The kid reached for the ferret in his head with his hands by its underarms and set it before him so that they were looking at each other. Then he smiled before walking closer to Judai.

"His name is Kuriboh! He told me that he wanted to be with you." He handed it out to Judai, ferret facing the Tamer in what looked like an animal version of a smile. The ferret cooed before leaping out of the purple-haired kid's hands into Judai's arms, and then climbed skilfully to his shoulder.

"Be good to him, okay? Or I will get angry with you!"

Judai didn't know what to say to him, if he should say thanks or something about not being allowed to keep pets at school...

"I need to go now! It was fun talking with you, Big Brother! I hope that you are not sad anymore." He smiled before turning around and running off deeper into the forest.

"Wait!" Judai called out to him, and he stopped on his tracks and looked back. "Yes~?" He asked in a sing-song voice.

"What's your name?"

The child grinned mischievously. "It's a secret!" Then he laughed. "But don't worry, Big Brother, you will see me again. As long as you have your candy and Kuriboh is with you, I will be around here again."

He spun around. "Kuriboh is my playmate, and your candy must be really sweet. So there's a reason for me to come back."

The child put on his biggest smile. "See you later, Big Brother, Kuriboh!" He waved vigorously before going on his merry way. Judai had barely taken a step forward when the kid was no longer visible beyond the trees, almost as if he disappeared.

'_Such a weird kid...' _Judai looked at his shoulder to the ferret, which, according to said child, was named Kuriboh. Its whiskers twitched before it licked the side of Judai's face, tail wagging in glee. He couldn't help but smile at his new friend.

'_I wonder why... he feels so familiar... Like he has an air around him that reminds me of someone I know... But who?'_

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"**Curtain of Hail, activate!"**

"**Amorphous Barrier, activate!"**

Asuka whipped out a card that released a storm of snow towards Misawa. Countless cold white balls rushed towards the other Elementist, who quickly threw up a wall of water blob, which, surprisingly, absorbed the multitude of grained ice. The Ice Elementist followed up with two icicles that rushed at a speed of a thrown spear towards the side of Misawa that wasn't covered by the water barrier.

However, as its name implied, the formless barrier merely extended one of its parts to intercept the attack, and similar to the snow, absorbed the projectiles. The way it was now, it looked like a monster with Asuka's ice attacks suspended inside it.

"Your Amorphous Barrier really is troublesome for physical attacks," Asuka commented as she took out another card.

Misawa did the same. "It is meant to do that. But it needs more calculations and training, it's still lacking."

"It's a strategy change for me, then. **Instant Freeze, activate!"**

A sky blue beam aimed for the fluid wall, faster than anyone can blink, immediately turning it into a huge block of ice.

Misawa smirked. "I predicted you'd do that." Her spell Instant Freeze, despite its power and uses, he knew to give her momentary recoil, an opportunity he could take advantage of.

"**Hydroryuu Deluge, activate!"**

A torrent of water came at full speed. It would be impossible to escape it with the power and speed it came pouring out. But suddenly...

"**Absolute Ice Wall, activate!"**

Asuka's voice rang out. There was a flash of light as a rectangular sheet of ice formed above her, seconds before the cascade of water completely came crashing down on her.

'_No way, she activated another spell right after Instant Freeze?' _Misawa looked flabbergasted. He never expected her to go past her limit. This wasn't within his calculations. To actually think that she would take his Hydroryuu Deluge, one of his most powerful spells, right on in an already exhausted state...

"Ahh!" A cracking sound could be heard as the barrier bore the force of the powerful flood but it was apparent that it wasn't completely up to the challenge.

Asuka summoned up more Duel Energy in an effort to reinforce the ice barrier. _'I can do this... I can make it!'_

The surging water finally ran out, turning the arena into a shallow pond. The icy shield finally gave way and broke into pieces that splashed into the water. The Ice Elementist was already down, seated on the floor, exhausted but not completely deprived of Duel Energy.

Misawa was unable to continue any longer either, but he was now crouched on the wet ground, having used a lot of his stamina to activate his most powerful offensive spell.

The elemental attacks that both magicians used returned to their respective cards. Four cards appeared out of thin air, black hole-like spirals appearing in their middle that sucked all the magic used. The flood and the shards of ice were swept into the cards they belonged to until there was nothing left on the field that would remind anyone that an Elementist battle just took place. The magic cards split up into two, returning to their owners who took them a little bit wearily. After a few minutes regaining their breathing, both finally stabilized themselves.

Misawa walked over to her and gave her a hand getting up. "I have to admit, this battle was harder than previous trainings. In my simulations, I never expected you to be able to summon up enough energy to make a barrier after Instant Freeze."

The female Elementist chuckled. "I noticed how I'm so tired after using that spell and I've been strategizing on how I could cover it up. I hope you didn't mind me trying it out in a Card Duel against you."

"Well, it's no problem; any duel gives me good information, anyway. But while you did manage to survive and use a spell after Instant Freeze, I don't think going on the defensive would help you in the long run," Misawa stated his observation seriously.

Asuka's face clouded with worry. "Well, I suppose I was lucky that what I shielded against was your strongest attack and you were also tired from it afterwards. But I think if you used another less powerful spell, though I might have survived its onslaught, I wouldn't be able to defend myself from your possible follow-up attack."

"Well, it's still possible to find a solution for this."

She nodded, and then smiled. "Thanks, Misawa-kun."

"It's fine. But I hope you don't mind me asking, why have you been so keen on training lately? You don't usually arrange for practice training outside of class like this."

"Well, that..." She looked uneasy, as she looked worriedly at her two cards.

'_Fubuki-nii-san...'_

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"The most recent skirmish between our forces and the rogue group Dark Army occurred the previous night at the forest beside Amethyst Town. There are no casualties from either side, but the Dark Army insurgents managed to get away. Damage to the area was kept to a minimum and the villagers of Amethyst Town did not get involved in this incident."

A rustling sound of papers.

"That is all, Your Highness."

Fire from the wall torches crackled.

"Hmm... The situation is certainly getting nowhere. What about the reports about the Dark Army's interest in Duel Academia?"

More paper flipping.

"They have been reported to be keeping watch but they have not taken any concrete action as of the moment. But it is safe to assume that they are planning something regarding the school."

A contemplative hum.

"And the school's barrier?"

A low nod.

"Still stable."

Rustling of clothes from straightening of a sitting posture.

"Very well then. For the minor Dark Army attacks at the towns, continue keeping it to a minimum. We shall not let the people panic more as it is. As much as possible, seek their hideout or capture any of them for information. Have the situation on a constant watch. We cannot afford to let this go on any longer."

A salute of obedience.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Hm... What should I do, Kuriboh?"

Judai was now at the school rooftop, having been able to sneak past students and professors alike in the corridors with the brown ferret hidden underneath his red school jacket. He was surprised to find Kuriboh cooperative of his sneaking, not suddenly poking out its head or even making a sound, almost as if it knew what its new master (or friend, as the mysterious boy from earlier put it) was doing.

After making sure the coast was clear, Kuriboh climbed down to the ground, giving a squeak in delight before running around Judai's feet. The brunette sat down cross-legged on the ground and held out his hand to it. The animal sniffed curiously before rubbing its sleek head affectionately against Judai's fingers.

"It will be a little hard trying to hide you from the others. But I don't want to let you go and I really enjoy your company. So it's not just the fact that I want to see again that kid who was your playmate. Is that ok, Kuriboh?"

"Krii!" It climbed happily onto Judai's arm.

The Tamer gave a small smile, as he reached for his cards and showed them to the ferret. "These are my friends, Neos and the Neo-Spacians." Kuriboh looked at each and every one of them with interest.

After a few moments, Judai returned them to his belt case. Then he let Kuriboh down in front of him and sighed. "I wonder where your playmate went, Kuriboh. I kind of want to ask him about something he said..."

Kuriboh tilted its head, whiskers twitching, but stayed on the spot, as if listening intently to what Judai was going to say.

"I was referring to something else but he seemed to have understood it... I felt like that kid somehow knew I was talking about someone... Not something..."

He looked up into the sky with a sad smile.

"About Johan."

The young magician didn't tear his gaze away from the sky as he continued his story. "Johan... I feel different when I'm with him... And I'm not really sure why. When he smiles, I feel glad... And on that night, I did that without thinking..."

"I know I have to tell him why... Like that kid said. But if I tell him, he'll get involved more, and he'll be in danger too, like everyone else. Yet the longer I don't tell him, the more I know I make him feel sad. I try not to look at him, because seeing his face when he's not smiling at me hurts a lot. I avoid him, because I don't completely understand the feelings he makes me feel. Ne, Kuriboh..." Judai looked back sadly at the ferret.

"Do you think he hates me now because I act like this?"

Just the thought alone made him sad, but actually saying it was much harder. Talking about his feelings and problems to a ferret seemed so silly but Judai didn't mind. In fact, he was having an easier time sorting them all now as compared to the times when he just pondered about them by himself.

"Krii..." The ferret seemingly felt the sadness that Judai was hurting about.

"You know, Kuriboh... if Johan really hates me, I don't know how I would feel afterwards. Maybe it's hearing him say that to me is the reason why I'm actually... probably... _scared_... of talking to him again."

Kuriboh put a paw on Judai's knee then looked at him directly with its beady black eyes, as if comforting the troubled magician.

"But... I don't want it to stay like this forever. If there is a small chance that he doesn't hate me... if I don't ask and talk to him, I'd never know, right?"

Judai patted the ferret's head. "Just like your friend said... If I don't want the bad guys to take him from me too. And I really don't want that to happen."

"Because I promised him from the bottom of my heart that I would protect him."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It was getting worse.

Johan wandered through the paths outside the school building itself almost aimlessly, however deep in his heart and mind, he had a purpose. He wanted to know the reason for these unusual events, of which he had nobody else to talk about. What happened that night was something between him and Judai, and he had a feeling it was supposed to remain like that, so he never told anyone about it, not even Shou or Asuka. He didn't tell Misawa or Manjyome either, even though he knew how worried they were about Judai. He felt a little guilty about keeping a secret something that was possibly the reason for the Tamer's strange behaviour but...

'_I'm sorry!'_

Those two words echoed in his head again.

Damn it, why?

As if that wasn't problematic enough, his troubles with his Fuser magic got worse.

~0~0~

"_Stop."_

_Johan turned to his mentor, who had his arms crossed with a serious look on his face. He himself was bent over, hands on his knees, sweating buckets and breathing heavily from exhaustion. "H-huh?"_

_Fujiwara resolutely said, "We're going to put a temporary stop to all your Practicals in the following days."_

"_Wh-what?" Johan was genuinely surprised. "Why?" Right now, he was nowhere near to regaining his magic powers back. True, he was tired now while having made no progress, but a complete break for more than one day? That wasn't like the strict Fujiwara he knew._

_The fifth-year sighed. "Look, there's been zero improvement in your performance. And no matter how much you tried in the past few days, you never succeeded even once. This means that you're exhausting yourself for nothing. If you push yourself too hard now, it could have a permanent effect on your ability, and there's even a possibility that you may not get it back."_

_Johan's eyes widened in shock._

_Fujiwara turned his back to the younger Fuser but before he left, he said, "Johan... Remember what I've told you before. Don't come back here until you've resolved what's bothering you."_

_And he walked away, leaving Johan with those words, and leaving the Reverse Fuser pondering his thoughts._

~0~0~

Completely swallowed up by his own thoughts, he wasn't looking at where he was going and in this state of mind; he ended up bumping unceremoniously onto someone.

Disoriented by the impact, Johan was just barely aware of the pain as his butt hit the stony floor. Unfortunately, the opposite seemed to have happened to the person he bumped into, for there was a loud cry of "Arrgh!"

"Sorry..." he mumbled while still trying to get his bearings. But he never managed to get the luxury of doing so, because he was lifted up into the air by his collar, and then slammed quite forcefully against the stone wall of the Academia building. Eyes closed shut from pain and dizziness, Johan instinctively clutched at the powerful hand that was suffocating him and holding him firmly against the wall.

"Who do you think you are, bumping into me like that?" A heated voice shouted.

Johan weakly opened his eyes. There in front of him were three students he wasn't familiar with, although judging by their height and build they were fourth-years. The one holding him up was a burly black-haired guy with an angry look that could rival a wild bull's. To the infuriated guy's left was a brown-haired student who looked gleeful about the turn of events. The other one appeared like he couldn't care less about what was happening in front of him.

Recognition dawned on the happy student's face. "Hey, Teraoka, isn't this kid the new Fuser? The one everyone calls Revert Fuser or something like that?"

Teraoka seemed to have identified Johan as well, but his grip didn't lessen even one bit. Now he had a smug look on his face. "Eh, it is him. What a coincidence. I've always wanted to have a chat with him."

With that tone of voice, Johan got the feeling that this wasn't a nice little talk over tea and cookies. He was in deep trouble now. And it was just his luck that there was nobody passing by at the moment. He had trouble breathing, it was taking a lot more effort to even struggle though it was to no avail. Teraoka was obviously a guy who worked out a lot, most likely because he was either an Equipper or Inductor. Whichever didn't matter, he still had strong muscles that were crushing Johan painfully against solid rock.

"Harada, is there anyone around?" Teraoka's black eyes moved to a sidelong glance in the quiet guy's direction.

"No," was the simple reply of the emotionless Harada.

However, that negative answer seemed to be the one Teraoka actually wanted to hear. "Good." He then returned his attention to Johan. "Now, you listen here, kid, and you better not try anything funny."

Johan wearily thought, there was no way he could even do anything pinned up against the wall struggling for breath, could he? No other choice then.

"You made a big mistake coming to the Duel Academia."

Eh, what?

"Look, you're just a nobody, a kid who came from the poorest village. You had guts entering Duel Academia when you don't even belong to a Clan."

"C-clan...?" Johan repeated weakly. He'd heard of that term from class and from his friends. There were many students on campus who were from Clans, whether from the major ones or the minorities. After all, the enrolment was very expensive, and thus it would be natural that the wealthy Clans would be able to afford schooling in Duel Academia. Indeed, he'd heard that it was really rare for the poorer and non-distinguished families to send their child to this school. He'd actually been surprised that Asuka, Shou, and Manjyome actually belonged to the more powerful ones. But it is also true that when a student came from a Clan, he or she would be well-known and even expected to enter Duel Academia even before he or she would be born.

"Yeah," Yamanaka, the scarily merry guy, supported his friend. "You're just like that Judai kid, coming from out of nowhere, and obviously not from a Clan."

Judai? He wasn't from a Clan either? I never knew that, Johan thought, shocked. Wait, what did he have to with all this?

"Well, I heard that when Yuki Judai returned a few months ago, this guy was with him," Harada commented.

"Heh, that should be obvious. The drop-outs stick together like cowards and—"

Johan interrupted in a small voice. "He's... He's not... a coward...!"

"Huh? What was that?" Teraoka asked, irritated.

The Fuser despite his precarious position looked on determinedly. "Judai... isn't a coward!"

Yamanaka laughed. "What, you're defending him? You've really got guts, kid... Not only for daring to enter the Academia, but also for defending someone you don't really know about?"

"Wh-what?"

"Hah, you probably didn't know what really happened to that Tamer. What the Dark Army did to him? No, it should be: what mistake he did in the past?"

Now Johan was confused. A mistake Judai did in the past? Is that... the one that Asuka and the others refused to elaborate on? It was obviously there, but nobody wanted to talk about it, as if it was a forbidden subject. Everybody knew, and he didn't.

And he realized the foolishness of his actions, heck, even his thoughts from the start.

He only cared about the fact that being with Judai made him happy and he just dismissed the implication that Judai had a terrible past experience as nothing.

He basked in the reassurance of Judai's promise of protection, but not caring that he was probably being a burden to the Tamer in that way.

He did not think that by meeting the Tamer and becoming the Dark Army's target, he only brought additional danger to him.

He depended so much on Judai. He was weak, not only in terms of his magic that cannot harm a person, but himself as a whole.

Then it would be no surprise if Judai hated him.

And he even wondered why Judai was avoiding him, when the answer was right in front of him all along. Or rather, the reason was him.

"I..." He was shaking, overwhelmed by his emotions. He was no longer struggling from being pinned.

Yamanaka's glee increased tenfold. "Hahahaha! I knew it! You're just a poor kid clinging onto false dreams. You don't _belong_ to the Duel Academia. You don't _deserve_ to be here."

And that was the final statement of judgment. Johan closed his eyes, fighting back tears.

'_Because I promise you, I'll protect you.'_

This was a promise that could never be fulfilled.

Because Judai was avoiding him.

Because Judai was not here.

Because Judai hated him.

'_I'm alone... And with no magic to protect myself...'_

'_**Do you desire power now?'**_

Johan stopped, appearing to the three older students as staring into nothing. He had not heard that voice ever since it first spoke to him on that fateful night back in Ruby Village. Like before, it was still mighty, the deep tone sending shivers throughout Johan's body. It was months ago, but the Fuser felt like it had been a very long time. He had no thought to spare on why it only spoke again now, what was relevant was the new question it imposed at the moment.

Power... He'd thought of wanting it long ago, but decided that it was not worth it. Desiring something that had the potential to corrupt, he'd considered it an evil craving. But that was back then when he was satisfied with who and how he was.

Now was different.

There was nobody to save him. Only he could save himself.

The decision was made.

There was no turning back.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Judai stood up, Kuriboh now settled on his shoulder. He took a deep breath.

"I'm going now."

He was just about to walk towards the stairs exiting the rooftop when he sensed an outburst of Duel Energy. He immediately stopped in his tracks, dread sweeping over him at the familiarity of that energy. The events of that night immediately resurfaced in his mind.

But there was something different about this surge of magic. It was many times more powerful, and surprisingly, had destructive intent behind it that wasn't there the first time. This was definitely strange for a power that was supposed to be harmless with an equally peaceful magician who didn't like fighting.

Acting on instinct, Judai immediately broke out into a run. A cold fear he'd never felt before ran through his veins, pumping him into action along with adrenaline.

He didn't know what will happen but that aura gave him a really bad feeling about what was to come.

"Johan...!"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Teraoka gasped, his grip loosening a little, upon seeing the sudden change in Johan. The Fuser's eyes shone momentarily in a rainbow-coloured flash, as the air suddenly became heavy with the presence of magical energy. Johan appeared to be in a trance, as he was surrounded by an enormous aura of Duel Energy.

This unusual display of magic terrified the three fourth-years who backed away in fright. Johan stood unsteadily, head hung low, his bangs covering his eyes.

The wind picked up around them, putting pressure on everyone present.

Yamanaka whispered frantically to Teraoka, "Oi, we weren't told that this was going to happen! Wasn't he supposed to be unable to use magic?"

"Y-y-yeah! What do we do now?"

"Don't ask me! I'm not the one who started this!"

"Sh-should w-we r-r-run?"

But they could not do so, because the air changed tension, as if something plugged it. From out of thin air, tiny crystals appeared from all directions like dust particles, gathering into a visible form; that of seven different gems that were in a circular formation right in front of Johan. The one on top was a pentagon red, to its right was a rectangular bright yellow, and next was an oblong orange. Following after was a rectangle emerald gem, then a seed-shaped blue jewel, a hexagonal indigo, and finally a five-sided violet crystal. Every gem shone brightly in their respective colours, power building up within them as they glistened.

The three tried to back out, but there was no escape for them. Yamanaka and Teraoka were scared out of their wits, while Harada looked absolutely dumbstruck as the three backed off as far away as possible, making sure to keep the young magician within their range of sight to see if he was going to do that unknown magic.

Then the seven gems stopped glowing, making the three even more frightened. Without moving, Johan uttered in a low, chilling voice:

"**Rainbow Breaker."**

As if on cue with the spell word, all crystals burst apart in unison, sending forward a beam of energy in their colours, which merged into one enormous rainbow-coloured blast that was directed at the three.

However, before it could reach them, the pressuring air dissipated, as Johan raised his head; seemingly back to his normal self. The sight of the magic blast aimed at the three made him freeze in fear.

"N-no... What have I...?"

With the controller's confusion, the beam of energy became wild, splitting into smaller bursts that ran at random directions, hitting trees, the ground, and even the people who had come to the scene upon sensing the strong energy, although they were able to luckily evade. The unfortunate ones got a hit to their bodies, though because it was just a mass of energy and not a piercing weapon, they were only thrown down to the ground with the force comparable to that of quite a strong punch.

"What the—?"

"What's going on?"

"Where are these beams coming from?"

Johan clutched at his chest, as he went down on his knees, feeling pain from using so much Duel Energy for a non-physical attack. "Uhh..."

The main body of the rainbow blast shot towards the sky but it was temporarily stopped by the school's barrier, which showed its form as a green dome. However, the beam easily shattered it, surging forward to the sky where it disappeared into the blue vastness.

Back at the Duel Academia's barrier, however... It was just one hole but most likely because it was already weakened over time, cracks emanated from the opening created by Johan's magic blast, that spread to the entirety of the barrier. Zigzag patterns like fissures on the earth marred the previously glassy surface of the shielding dome, until they reached the ends of it. And, like glass indeed, the barrier shattered into pieces before disappearing completely.

Everyone who had witnessed this event was horrified, including the culprit himself.

Johan could only stare in fear, unable to say anything or even move. But within his mind, he could still recognize the mysterious mighty voice.

'_**Power... and desiring it... is not a sign of wickedness. It can be good or evil... And this depends on the one who uses it.'**_

'_**But bear this in mind: No matter what intention you may have with power, whether for the greater good or for the downfall of your enemy...'**_

'_**Always steel yourself for the consequences.'**_

And with that, the presence of the owner of that voice within Johan's body disappeared, taking with it the little energy that was keeping Johan conscious.

But before he completely succumbed to fatigue, Johan was vaguely aware of seeing a pair of desperately worried brown eyes.

'_... Judai...?'_

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

_It's so cold._

_It's so scary._

_It's so lonely._

_The snow doesn't stop falling from the sky. There's only destroyed objects around me with smoke coming from them. I don't see anybody._

_I'm alone._

_I don't remember anything that happened earlier clearly. What just took place? Everything is so confusing. What can I remember? I recall..._

_Hearing shouting and then feeling something that made the surroundings hot. _

_Was I burning? _

_I was pushed and hit by people who were running in all directions._

_But nobody saw me. Nobody came looking for me. Nobody cared at all whether I was there or not._

_Was I really there? Was I invisible to them?_

_Then, suddenly, everything around me was just hot. I don't know why or how. There was only one thought in my mind._

_I'm going to die._

_To die... _

_How would it feel? Would I know if I'm dead? Would someone know and see me?_

_Or... Is there no one who will save me?_

_I can't be saved._

_I won't be saved._

_I'm going to die._

_I'm scared._

_I cry. My heart is crying. My tears are hot, just like everything around me._

_I don't want to be alone._

_I don't want to die...!_

_Someone... Anyone... Help me... _

_Save me!_

_... ... ..._

_I had given up hope. _

_But then... _

_I heard a voice. _

_It was so strong... _

_But it was also gentle... like it was telling me that everything was going to be all right._

'_**If that is your wish.'**_

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Johan blearily opened his eyes. He was greeted unceremoniously by the following: the blinding sunset light from what appeared to be a window (his vision was still fuzzy, and his eyes felt hot and watery) on his right, the headache that felt like it was trying to split his head apart, the weariness that was dragging his body down permanently to the warm and fluffy bed in the school's clinic, and finally, the ache in his heart that, though had been there in the past weeks, was hurting even more at the moment.

'_What... just happened?' _

It was already late afternoon, but the last he remembered it was still early noon.

Not to mention, he was so tired, like he'd run the whole way from Ruby Village to Duel Academia within a few minutes without pause.

The last time he felt like this was...

He gasped as he finally remembered.

Being pushed against the wall.

Being told he didn't belong.

The return of the mysterious voice.

The question of power.

The torrent of Duel Energy throughout his body.

The seven coloured gems.

The powerful magic blast that went out of control.

The beam of magic that annihilated the school's barrier.

The parting words of the unknown voice.

The concerned eyes that could only belong to one person.

What had he done?

All that happened, just because he became selfish, wanting power that he knew all along would bring danger to everyone around him. Dread gripped him cruelly. Had he hurt people with his magic? What was going to happen now that the Academia's barrier was no longer there? How would his friends react? Would they be afraid of him? Hate him? Leave him?

"Ah, you're awake."

Johan looked to his left. There stood Ayukawa-sensei, holding a clipboard with some papers on it. She smiled at Johan as she sat down on the chair by the bedside.

"How are you feeling?"

The Fuser tried to sit up but found that he could not so he just replied as he was, lying down tired on the bed. "Quite tired and a bit sleepy. But um... Ayukawa-sensei, I hope you don't mind me asking... Why are you in charge of the clinic?"

She didn't seem offended by the question as she replied, "Well, the main nurse here is Miss Lilyvere, but she's the one in charge when the injury is physical. When the problem is about magic, the duty is mine."

"Oh..." He never knew that. Well, this was his first trip to the infirmary, after all.

"So then... I know you probably want to go back to sleep but I've got to check up on how you're feeling to see if there's anything that needs immediate attention. Is that all right?"

"O-okay..."

The professor took out a pen from her pocket. "Is there any part of your body where you feel pain?"

Johan pondered, "Um... My head hurt a lot when I woke up but it's feeling less so now. Nothing really hurts; my body just feels so heavy."

"I see." She scribbled something on the paper. "What about Duel Energy? Do you feel it flowing even faintly?"

"N-no."

She wrote something on the paper again and looked over it for a few minutes. Johan was fighting the urge not to fall asleep, no matter how much his body yearned for it. Just when his eyes were about to close for good, Ayukawa-sensei spoke up. "Since you don't have any external injuries, there shouldn't be any problems regarding your health. You are quite hotter than normal though, so you need longer bed rest."

"I do feel a little bit on the warm side..." Johan murmured.

"Then get a good night's sleep and you'll be better in no time, Johan-kun." The magic professor smiled sincerely.

"Thank you."

"Will you be all right sleeping here by yourself?"

Johan nodded slowly. "I... I will. But umm... Ayukawa-sensei, about what happened earlier..."

She stood up with a sympathizing look. "I know there are a lot of things you want to know, but now is not the time for it. You should rest first, all right?"

"Uh... Y-Yes. All right."

The female teacher adjusted the blanket. "Then sleep well, Johan-kun."

He smiled weakly in gratitude before closing his eyes. Ayukawa-sensei remained for a few minutes before leaving the room, closing the door softly.

Johan felt his body screaming for sleep, no matter how much he wanted to go and have his questions answered and his fears settled.

However, his sleepiness took over, and he fell into a nightmare-ridden sleep.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"This is bad-nya, Headmaster Samejima."

The principal and Daitokuji-sensei were in the former's office, discussing about the latest turn of events.

"The barrier-nya..."

"I know, but there's nothing we can do about it." Samejima crossed his fingers on the desk. "Such a magic is beyond my capacity. It is unlike the magic barriers created by Elementists. Furthermore, it covered the entire campus of the school. Such a large-scale magic cannot be done in these times where cards limit our magic ability."

Daitokuji looked worried. "But I never expected Johan-kun to be able to do such a powerful concentrated magic attack-nya..."

"It is an unknown magic, after all. There was always a possibility that this could happen. Where is he now?"

"He's in the infirmary. Even for him, I'm sure it took a lot of his energy-nya."

"I see. We need to have a talk with him once he's all better and ready."

"All right-nya. And the barrier, Headmaster?"

The old man appeared deep in thought for a moment before reaching into a book that was placed on the far right of his desk. "This book contains the records of the Academia's history, written by the former headmasters. The school's barrier was created by the very first headmaster and in fact, the founder of the school. That was still the time when magic was possible without cards."

"His name is never mentioned in this book, not even by the ones who came after him. However, he is revered as a very skilled magician specialized in defense spells and barrier-making. Even in his death, his barrier did not disappear. How he'd done it was never explained, so the successors only knew how to reinforce the barrier, not create it from scratch."

"I don't understand how Johan-kun's magic blast easily penetrated it but I suppose the more important matter at hand for now is how we can make up for its absence. News of this is bound to come out sooner or later and I fear that the Dark Army and the kingdom's troops might be involved now."

"The situation has certainly escalated further than we anticipated-nya..."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"This is so hard to believe. I would have doubted if I had not seen this with my own eyes. Why did the Lord...?" An incredulous female voice muttered in the place of rainbow mirage.

"That is his decision. It is not something we can interfere with."

"But Saphiro..."

The aforementioned did not waver in his tone. "The Lord does not allow himself to be controlled. If we had seen that power, it was not done so without the consent of the Lord himself."

"Saphiro is right!" A new voice piped up, though it had an echoic quality to it, as if it spoke directly into the minds of those present. "The Lord has trust in him. I have seen this with my own eyes!"

"So that place is where you have gone?"

"Yes, Methys!" came the excited reply.

The proud lady asked, "And... Your judgment will not be swayed?"

"No, it will never. The Lord trusts him. I trust him too. And that is enough for me!"

"Well, you do have excellent senses when it comes to finding the goodness in hearts, after all."

The newcomer flashed a happy grin. "Isn't it?"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Meanwhile, underground, a pleased, sinister laugh echoed endlessly throughout the rocky walls.

The sadistic glee it emanated was enough to send chills down anyone's spine.

"My suspicions have been confirmed. This is the most wonderful news to come in a very long time. Don't you agree, Knight?"

"Yes," was the emotionless reply.

"I can finalize my plans now. Soon, the whole Army will go into action. But first... We need those two powers in our hands. This is something I leave in your hands, Knight. Do not fail me." The previously happy tone turned menacing. "Is that understood?"

"I will not disappoint you, Mad King."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Night soon came to the unsettled Duel Academia. Everyone was still talking about the incident from earlier although some spoke of rumours that exaggerated the actual event. Some were worried about the destruction of the barrier, fearing that even the school was no longer safe.

It was another full moon brightened evening, the surroundings lit by moonlight that the signs of destruction from when Johan's powers went berserk were still slightly recognizable.

Soft footsteps destined for the school infirmary made little echoes in the darkness. Whoever it was opened the door to the clinic quietly and closed it in the same manner. Then he walked towards the only currently occupied bed in the room. The light that filtered in from the window revealed his identity.

Judai stared at the Reverse Fuser, who was asleep from magic usage exhaustion. He came by himself, sneaking past in the darkness. Kuriboh was asleep in his room, cocooned under his blankets so that Shou wouldn't see him by chance, and he'd left the ferret there. He really wanted to see Johan ever since he caught the boy when he collapsed back at the campus grounds after he'd done a new form of magic again. He wanted to talk, that is, what he initially came to do and decided earlier during the day. But he could not do so at the moment now that Johan was asleep; waking him up would disturb him from the rest he needed very much.

But he still could not stop himself from going, even if a chat wasn't going to take place because, whether he admitted it or not, he was worried for Johan.

He looked at said guy, who was fast asleep, and he was reminded of the night he stayed over at the orphanage, when he woke up in the middle of the night upon sensing the arrival of the Dark Army magicians. Johan had been asleep back then as well, but he looked much more peaceful back then as compared to now.

'_Johan...'_

Thinking about it and doing it were two very different things. Now that Johan was actually in front of him, he was getting apprehensive of hearing the answer to his question: Did Johan hate him?

In actuality, there were a lot of questions he wanted to ask, some related to what happened earlier. Such a blast of magic was unheard of, yet Johan was able to do it. His power was really beyond normal, and with the new display of it, it could now be considered really dangerous than when it was just applied in the form of Dimension Crossing.

And when the Dark Army heard of this, would that make them go after Johan even more?

'_But I promised him, didn't I? And that strange kid even made me remember to keep it.'_

However, given that magic attack... Was Johan actually more powerful than he initially thought? Perhaps stronger than even him? Did Johan... not need protection anymore?

Judai's fist tightened. Was that it?

He turned around, intending to leave, when an unsteady, solemn, sad voice shattered the silence.

"Judai... Do you hate me?"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It wasn't really cold, but maybe because of the fever he had, Johan found himself shivering a little underneath his blanket. He'd gotten some sleep for the rest of the day, even if it wasn't exactly a peaceful one. Vague flashes of the past he'd never seen before, as well as memories of the past he thought he'd long forgotten and buried in the deeper trenches of his mind, came to him in his dreams, though some could be considered nightmares. He was actually awoken by the sound of the door opening, but tiredness kept his eyes closed, even though underneath the facade of being asleep he was actually awake. As to how he knew it was Judai, even he himself didn't know. Maybe it was partly a gamble, maybe it was partly a desire deep within him to see the Tamer, but he just... _knew._

At first, he thought that it might have been a figment of his imagination, or the delusions of exhaustion, but those eyes he'd seen before he collapsed... They were real. And they belonged to Judai. He'd felt someone catching him as he fell, a sensation that for some reason didn't feel new to his body. Was Judai that person?

And the concern in those eyes... Were they really directed at him? If so, then... There was the possibility...

Earlier, he'd been so sure that Judai avoided him because he hated him. But if it was true, why was he worried? That doubt lit a spark of hope in his heart that maybe... Just maybe... Judai didn't...

And that's why, he wanted to ask.

He was waiting to hear if Judai was going to say anything first but when the tell-tale signs of Judai leaving reached his ears, he blurted out the question he wanted to ask even before he could stop himself.

There was no way to take it back now, so he might as well just wait for the answer to come, no matter how much he dreaded the negative probability of it. He pushed the blanket away lightly, trying his best to sit up despite his body protesting against the action. There weren't any torches lit up, and the only source of light in the large room was the light of the full moon that looked so ominous outside the window. His eyes took a little while to adjust to the minimal light in the darkness and he could make out the form of the other person in the room. He looked worriedly to where Judai stopped, standing as if frozen in place. The Tamer hadn't even turned to face him, so he had no idea what the other was thinking of at the moment.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Judai might have been petrified by shock and it showed so clearly on his face. But inside his mind, everything moved so fast it was like a blur, the only thought he could catch was, _'Why?'_

Why did Johan ask that? Wasn't he the one who was supposed to be hated? What made Johan even _consider_ that notion?

His voice barely above a whisper but with resolution behind it, he said, "Johan, I could never hate you. You're... an important person to me. In fact, it's you who should hate me..." Finally in control of himself, Judai closed his eyes in frustration, still refusing to turn around and look at Johan directly. He might just cave in to the desire to release all his frustrations if he did. "I've been avoiding you without telling why. If you do hate me, it's just fine; I know you have reason to."

'_Why am I lying? If Johan hates me, it's not fine, damn it!'_

After a few moments of silence, Johan spoke up with a slightly shaky voice, perhaps holding back both incredulity and sadness behind it. "Well, I could never hate you either, Judai. You're... I care for you much, the same as to how much I care for Edo and the orphans." Johan's clutch on the blanket shook. "When you avoided me, I felt hurt, but I could honestly not hate you. You... You wouldn't do that without reason, right? That's what I believed. I thought that reason was me. You hugged me that night... I was the cause for what made you act like that. And I thought you didn't want to talk to me anymore because... you hated me. But if you say so now... Was my assumption wrong?"

'_I thought I'd never feel that kind of loneliness again... How come?'_

"Johan, I was actually going to talk to you today. But then, that... accident happened and things got so messy, I could only sneak here this night. Johan... I... was confused about my feelings. And when that happens, I tend to think about them within myself, as far as possible from the source of my uncertainty. The reason I've been avoiding you... had something to do with both me and you. But in your part, it's not any hate for you. I'm sorry I made you feel that way."

"But I've finally decided..." Judai slowly turned around, facing Johan directly with determined eyes.

"I'll tell you the truth."

**To be continued...**

**

* * *

**

Well, that appears to be another cliffhanger. I know it must be frustrating but look at it this way, it would have been worse if I left it at the 'Judai, do you hate me' line (which was initially going to be the end of this chapter until I decided to add the first few bits that were supposed to be for the next chapter to make the cliffhanger not as mind-killing as it would have been). What do you think? Should I have hidden myself in a bulletproof and angry-reader-proof box if that were the case? xD

This is the longest chapter yet, and it's a mixture of action, conversations and thoughts. And of course, more mysteries are added, such as the odd conversation between Fubuki and Ryou, whom I've finally introduced to the story, the weird kid Judai met at the forest, and the changes in Johan's power.

And cheers to you if you've noticed that this chapter was sprinkled with Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha references. There are two obvious: Kuriboh being a brown ferret, and the name of Johan's destructive magical attack: Rainbow Breaker. Does Starlight Breaker ring any bells? xD It's because I've recently gotten into it and it's quickly become a loved anime of mine. But, eh, Spiritshipping is still my love. xD

The plot's moving along quite fast now (like I said it would) and though everyone's at the edge of their seats now awaiting to see how Judai and Johan's midnight conversation will turn out, bear in mind that the school's barrier's destruction would bite everyone back to reality later.

But the emotional dilemma between the two protagonists is quite confusing, isn't it? They seem to be going in circles, never getting to the point. Hopefully, Judai's confession of the 'truth' will settle a lot. We'll see.

By the way, if you want to see what could affect the updating of this story as well as more insight into the chapter, visit my LJ.

I hope you enjoyed the long chapter!

Next chapter preview:

'_Hey, it's you again!'_

_His body condition got worse and it looked it wasn't getting better anytime soon._

'_You're worried about something.'_

Review if you please. All comments and suggestions are appreciated.

~Rine-Line


	7. Morning Sun

Hiya, Rine-Line here!

Well... Want to hear my excuses? Heh. It's been almost a year since I've updated. School was really tough, I'll LJ rant about it later. Seriously, I've wanted to update so many times throughout the year but I was in too much of a bundle of nerves. I appreciate all the reviews/favourites/alerts that kept coming in this time period; they've inspired me to keep going, even if at a snail's pace.

As for whether I've gone rusty in writing after a year... Well, you can judge for yourself with this chapter. I think a lot of you readers must have given up on me after a long time of silence. Haha. Thanks anyway. Thing is, as much as this chapter is the answer to a cliffhanger, it can be a bit... boring. Seriously, there are lots of blocky paragraphs about the characters' thoughts or of conversations. But it depends on your cup of tea in reading.

I hope you enjoy!

* * *

**Fusion Hearts**

**Chapter 7: Morning Sun**

* * *

**'_I'll tell you the truth.'_**

Johan unconsciously clenched his fists, sensing that they were shaking in the tension. It was just one statement but...

Why was he so apprehensive?

This was something he longed so much to know because he didn't want to be the only one who was still not privy to it. So why did he feel like he was afraid to know?

Was it because it always hinted that something terrible happened?

But if he backed out now, then he would be stuck in the dark forever. And this was a feeling that he never liked, and his dreams from before this only served to remind him of this uncomfortable fact. So he remained silent, gathering his inner courage as he waited for the story, the 'truth', to come out of Judai's lips.

Judai didn't know what exactly inside of him made him say those words, but the words tumbled out before he could stop himself, and there was no going back whether he wanted to or not. But he shrugged it off; he planned to do this anyway. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, priming himself for what he was about to say.

Truth be told, this would be the first time he ever told of his life's recent events to anyone. It was all because everyone else in the Academia witnessed with their own eyes or learned through word of mouth, what were those incidents, both causes and effects. He had no need to tell it like the tale of tragedy it was, and frankly, he never had the time to even do so. He saw, he heard, he cried, he experienced... But he never talked about it to anyone else with his own voice.

It was both ironically funny and strange as to why Johan ended up being the first person he talked to about it, when the Fuser was the most recent stranger he'd met. Fate was definitely perplexing. He wondered why the feeling that Johan would be the foremost person who could relate to how he felt existed at all.

"Johan... Did you ever wonder why I was in Ruby Village by myself that day?"

The seemingly unrelated-to-the-current-topic question caught Johan off guard as he echoed with a "Huh?"

Ignoring the slight dizziness that most likely came from magic overuse kickback, Johan tried to get his bearings in order.

NOW that Judai mentioned it, he realized that he never did ask him directly. Daitokuji-sensei hinted that it was not a simple walk, since he gave Judai detention for it but he didn't think it was because of something serious and that it was just a mischievous escapade.

"I ran away, Johan. From the Academia... from my friends... from my problems..." Judai spoke, closing his eyes gravely as he slowly walked towards the moonlit window.

"...Why?" Johan's voice still carried his concern. He was trembling slightly, and would have given up to the prodding of his emotions had it not for the thought that if he gave in it might make Judai stop. "Just... just what did the Dark Army do to you?"

"They didn't do anything to me directly. But to someone else..." Judai finally reached his destination, and the light from the sky reflected well the misty brown orbs.

"The Dark Army killed my parents."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The night may not really be dark, but even the inky blackness could not conceal the sparkle of bright ruby.

Fleeting footsteps barely made any echoes as a silhouette of a young child could be distinguished skipping playfully between trees on leaf-littered grounds.

The red-eyed boy gave a small smile as he looked ahead, where the section of the Duel Academia main building that housed the infirmary towered over him.

"Looks like both of them are facing what they are most afraid of. But... They will come through it for sure!"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

A heavy feeling weighed on him as he was left unable to say anything after finally knowing that such a tragedy occurred. Johan just stared sadly, at a loss on what he should say or do. Was this heart-wrenching feeling... pity? Empathy...?

"The Dark Army killed them... and it's my fault!"

... ... ...

Wait, what?

Johan's sad demeanour immediately changed into a puzzled one. "Wh-why?"

The Tamer took a deep breath, and then turned to look at Johan again without any traces of sadness in his eyes. "Fujiwara-san and Daitokuji-sensei told you that I'm a target because of my ability to fuse monsters, right?"

Johan nodded, albeit slightly uncertainly, unsure of where this conversation was going.

"And you've probably seen my friends, the Neo-Spacians. They were strong themselves but there were older and more experienced Tamers who also had powerful monsters. Those guys from the Dark Army never really focused on going after me, until that incident a few months ago."

Judai leaned against the wall beside the window. "It was a field trip to the temple at the top of the mountain: the Rainbow Ruins. Nobody is allowed to enter inside but at least for History class we were allowed to see the outer structure of the place up close. But then, when we were about to leave, Shou mentioned that he forgot something up there and I went with him. But when we got there, as I waited for Shou, I saw some guys from the Dark Army sneaking around the place."

"People from the Dark Army? At the Rainbow Ruins?" Johan questioned in utter confusion. Why would a renegade group be skulking around that place? An empty sacred shrine had no connection with their supposed goal of taking the throne.

"Well, they saw me. But I didn't see exactly what they were doing but they assumed I must have and they immediately attacked. They had more experience than I had."

~0~0~

"_Uwah, Aniki!"_

"_Shou!"_

_Judai huffed in exhaustion. Strong as he was, he was still not used to sending out many of his Neo-Spacians at the same time and keeping their existence up for a long and life-threatening battle. Shou still wasn't used to sending out his own monsters either but compared to Judai, he had a lesser chance of survival in the fight._

_The others didn't know that they went back to the ruins, although they would have been noticed missing by now. Still, it was a long trek up and down the mountainside and by the time help would arrive... Judai didn't want to think about it. The two of them didn't have much choice._

_He looked at his friend straight in the eye. "You have to get help, Shou!"_

"_But what about you!"_

"_I'll be fine... somehow," Judai said before pushing Shou off and out of the path of a stray attack. "Just go!"_

"_Aniki!" Shou didn't really want to leave him but... "All right! But don't you lose!"_

_Judai was a bit taken aback by the sheer determination shining in those eyes behind glasses. Truthfully, he'd never seen Shou like that before. But... Maybe it was always there and Shou just could not show it completely. He smiled and struck his pose. "I won't lose!"_

_The bespectacled teen nodded before running off, away from the impromptu battlefield in front of the old, mysterious structure. Judai watched him go, making sure to block off the attacker who attempted to stop his friend._

"_You've got guts trying to take us all on by yourself, boy," a Dark Army Equipper amusedly commented as he swung his long spear to ward off the attack of one of the Neo-Spacians, Aqua Dolphin._

_Sweat trickled down Judai's face as he faced the enemies off apprehensively. They were strong, no mistake about it and he had to use up a lot of Duel Energy just keeping his monsters alive and able to use their abilities. If he faltered now, the Neo-Spacians would disappear because there would be no Duel Energy to keep them up. But looking at the situation, he had Aqua Dolphin, Flare Scarab and Air Hummingbird out and while there were better chances of winning in increasing quantity, he couldn't summon another Neo-Spacian lest he completely pass out from stamina loss. Even now, he was at his limits maintaining all three of them, if his breathing becoming ragged every other minute or so was of any proof. He felt the spirits of the remaining three Neo-Spacians in their cards in his pocket emanating their worry for him and he was glad for that, even if he wasn't exactly sure how he could sense that when they were in their cards. It wasn't the first time that it had happened though but really, he mentally shook off his thoughts, this wasn't the time to be deducting mysteries, as he dodged yet another attack gone astray._

"_Whoa!"_

_Unfortunately, he didn't dodge correctly, or rather; luck landed his foot in the way of an innocently sitting rock, resulting in him tripping unceremoniously, although luck did also save him from a nasty collision with another bigger boulder that just happened to be right beside the majestic closed double doors of the Rainbow Ruins._

_Still, he was disoriented by the sudden panic that the turn of events brought, not to mention his energy was constantly being drained maintaining his Neo-Spacians. And there were still no signs of help arriving._

_The Tamer sat up, leaning against the door of the old temple, and grit his teeth in a surge of dread. Is this it?_

_At that moment, a flash of light emanated from one of the pillars that surrounded the Rainbow Ruins, temporarily blinding all who were present, even the Dark Army attackers as well as Shou who had just arrived along with their teachers and several guards and soldiers of the kingdom._

'_What's going on?' Judai thought, trying to squint through the illumination. Though it was not really clear, he could make out a small figure sitting atop the column._

'_A... squirrel?'_

_The tiny creature raised its tail and that action appeared to be the trigger of a shattering sound that seemed to come from the sky itself. When Judai turned his eyes toward the sound, he was met by the sight of a new monster bathed in a grayish-silver light._

'_But that's... That can't be...' Images from past dreams immediately came to mind. Dreams of this particular monster being involved in a battle... A voice shouting out its identity..._

"_Neos...?"_

_The silver human-shaped monster turned to him and nodded. The three Neo-Spacians then glowed in their respective coloured auras, rising towards Neos._

'_**Power isn't about numbers, right?'**_

'_Eh?' Judai looked around. Everyone else was left awestruck by the appearance of Neos so who could have said that? He turned back to look again at the creature he thought was a squirrel that was atop the pillar before. But it was no longer there. A voice... in his head?_

'_**When two powers are combined, it is stronger than when they are separate, right?**__'_

'_Two... powers? Combined?'_

'_**You just need to believe.' **__Then the childlike voice chuckled._

'_Believe?' Judai looked towards Neos and the Neo-Spacians who wore expressions that trusted what he would tell them._

_Judai shakily got up, letting out as much of his Duel Energy as possible. This was a risk. He'd thought of it before but other people especially his teachers said that it was impossible, for it'd take a great amount of Duel Energy even if it were possible. But maybe it WAS possible; it was just that no one ever tried it._

_And he would._

"_**Activate! FUSION!"**_

_With the force of that command word, or more accurately, a spell, Neos and Aqua Dolphin were surrounded by brilliant light, one that was so luminous everyone was forced to shield their eyes in some way. When it had died down, there in place of the two monsters was a new unknown monster, but noticeably had the characteristics of both monsters that were now gone. Flare Scarab and Air Hummingbird were flanked on either side of the monster emanating power._

"_What is that...?" the confident Equipper from before ironically asked in fear._

_Without wasting any moment, the new monster let out its attack, echoing sound waves that shattered rocks and rendered a few people squinting and covering their ears. But it was powerful enough to send the enemies who were conveniently located near to lose consciousness._

_By the time everyone had gathered their wits, there were three bodies covered by the distinctive cloak lying in the ground. The triumphant monster now faced Judai in silence, who was staring in a mixture of amazement and curiosity. He slowly formed the words he wanted to say. "You're... both Neos... and Aqua Dolphin... A fusion of them... Aqua... Neos?"_

_The sleek blue and silver coloured monster nodded its head before separating into Neos and Aqua Dolphin. Then all four monsters shone as they returned to card form, fluttering down towards Judai's hand. Neos' card was on top of the pile and the Tamer stared at it in near disbelief._

"_Aniki!"_

_Shou's relieved call snapped Judai to attention. He smiled, taking his eyes off the card for a moment and letting his mind drift back from the clouds and into steady reality. "Shou...!" He felt a little tired and it affected the volume of his voice... Though maybe that was an understatement, seeing as he had just come out of an extremely tough battle alive._

_... Wait._

"_Aniki?" Shou blinked up to him after seeing the other Tamer with a shocked face. Judai looked at his cards again._

_He'd done a spell previously thought impossible. That in itself was already an anomaly._

_But to remain conscious and not be completely drained of energy after doing it?_

"_This is..."_

~0~0~

"Well, that was pretty much what happened back then. I really don't know how Neos just appeared there or if that little creature was even real. But... it really happened."

Johan could only nod, mesmerized by the tale that he'd been listening intently to.

"After that, I learned how to improve using Fusion, and got stronger with it. But then news of what happened reached the Dark Army because..." Judai paused, taking a deep breath in. Johan waited in understanding that the Tamer was catching his breath from the storytelling. He still waited when Judai walked towards him and sat on the chair beside the bed and was now closer to him. Had Johan been less immersed in his curiosity and anticipation, he'd have been stunned on how close the two of them were now when, weeks before, the distance between them was so far in more than the physical sense of Judai avoiding him. But as it was, he merely sat ever attentive on the edge of the side of the bed, facing the Tamer a few feet away.

"Shou, Manjyome, Misawa, Asuka and I were out in Sapphire City one day. It was still the time when people weren't afraid of the Dark Army and we were still allowed to go out of the school campus. A group of them came after us, although since the five of us were more familiar with our magic then, we were at least able to hold them off. But then, one of them yelled that they intended to make me join the Dark Army. And that they would resort to any method to do it..."

Memories of the conversation in the orphanage's kitchen flooded back to Johan's mind. When Daitokuji-sensei mentioned that the Dark Army would go after the people he cared about... If the Dark Army did the same to Judai, then... "That's when they—"

"—went after my parents. My only relatives. The guy who did it... called himself Knight. He... He told me that the Dark Army would go after my friends and—"

This time, it was Judai who was interrupted mid-sentence by Johan, who looked sideways with an upset expression as the actions of Judai during the past days finally made sense. "—You avoided your friends."

The brunet fidgeted with guilt in his seat. "... Yeah. Because I thought it was my fault. And on the day that I ran away from school, it was because I lashed out angrily on my friends."

"But..." Johan slowly turned his head back towards Judai, bright green eyes locking with the Tamer's own russet. "...One can't protect anything by running away."(1)

Such serious and bitterly underlined declaration brought silence to the two boys, though it was more a thoughtful than an awkward one. Judai spent it staring at Johan, surprised, though it slowly turned into curiosity. On the other hand, Johan was deeply immersed in his thoughts to notice that.

What he just said... He'd proven that himself. Or rather, it was what he learned from what happened earlier in the day. Running away and not fighting back was cowardice and people who were like that wouldn't be able to protect anything, not others, and especially not themselves. He didn't want to remain helpless forever and he was granted that desire.

But... why did it come with the price of destruction?

Just when he learned a way to fight back and not run away from danger, he had done what he feared: chaos and ruin. Did that mean that his wish was wrong?

"That's not true, Johan."

Judai's own assertion that countered the earlier statement broke Johan out of the haze that he entered because of his clouding thoughts. The Tamer elaborated, now smiling a little himself. "It may have been wrong in my case, but it isn't with yours, when you saved me back at that night at your house in Ruby Village. Your power enabled us to run away from death. You wanted to run away using your power back then because you thought it would save me. Your Dimension Crossing is amazing, Johan, and it's a power that can protect."

'_A power that can protect...' _Johan echoed in his mind. Then he looked down dejectedly. "But earlier today I nearly destroyed... no, I broke the school's barrier with _that _power. How can I protect with it? It's certainly different compared to Dimension Crossing, isn't it?"

"But it doesn't change the fact that it's your power, Johan," was Judai's response. "It was the same with my Fusion."

The Tamer's smile was small, outlined by bitter regret and accepting realization. "When I learned that it's the reason why the Dark Army went after me, I refused to do Fusion, because doing it reminded me of what the Dark Army had done to me. Everyone was angry at me for that, insisting that it wasn't my fault. But when the Dark Army attacked us at your house, I realized that Fusion was a part of me and no matter where I go it won't change. If I've been given this power, instead of hiding it, I'd rather use it to protect my friends."

"Judai..."

"Johan." The Tamer stood up and put his hands on Johan's shoulders. "Don't be afraid of your own power. I won't run away anymore. I will protect you from your power if I had to."

"No."

Judai blinked, letting his hands fall to the sides, feeling the disappointment and fear running through his veins. There was such conviction in that simple word. Was Johan's trust in him lost for good?

"Ah... I don't mean it that way, Judai." Johan caught Judai's limping hand by the wrist. "It's just that... I really do not want to remain helpless anymore. And Judai, up until now, I didn't know that being a target of the Dark Army was such a burden for you, and you've gone through far worse things than I did because of them. Yet you're the one sacrificing yourself for your friends. You avoided your friends because you thought it would protect them even if you didn't want to stay away from them. You're just as hurt as they are, but you're trying to be strong for their sake too."

"Stop trying to shoulder everything by yourself, Judai."

Johan's eyes shone with steel determination and burning fire that it could have been unwavering fury otherwise. But they were not eyes of anger... that much was the aura Judai could feel from them. He briefly wondered how Johan's eyes could emit such fiery willpower and still retain their gentle gaze. "But I understand how you feel. While it did lead me to do something irreversible like what I did earlier, like you, I also want to be able to protect the people I care for even if I had to do it myself. I guess I can't really completely blame you for that." He grinned. "If you really want to protect me from the Dark Army... or even my own power, I'll only allow it if you let me protect you too."

And it was as if a huge load was figuratively lifted off of Judai's shoulders. The situation and his feelings were drowning in confusion before but now, he got the feeling that everything was going to be all right. The biggest and most genuine smile he's had in days was making its way to his face, along with an uplifting tingling in his body like he was going to float away like a cloud if Johan wasn't holding his hand.

Similar to Judai, Johan was feeling happier and content than he had ever been. There were going to be many consequences he had to face tomorrow for what he did, but with this, his new-found power wasn't going to forever be labelled as a weapon of destruction. If he needed to control it and fight with it, he would, if it meant being able to protect everyone he cared for. Even if this new power could destroy, he would make an effort to make sure it was going to be used right because, like Judai said, this power was his. Both the good and bad consequences were things he had to face and deal with. If the owner of that unknown voice was the one who provided him the means to do magic, then like with Dimension Crossing, he would find a way for this new ability to be able to protect rather than create destruction.

Then two pairs of eyes met, and understanding passed through the short expanse of space, unseen by any being. Johan abruptly stood up at the same time that Judai pulled him. So who really initiated it? It was difficult to tell. But neither of them cared for the answer to that. Both were already lost in the swirling hurricane of emotions, of happiness and contentment, and they let the gust sweep them off like leaves, unknowing and negligent of where they would end up falling. This was a risky move, and a lot was at stake. Their actions would certainly affect not only themselves, but the people around them. But they were willing to take that risk by acting on the whims of their feelings.

The gap was gone in a flash.

Indeed, just like back at the night that started the change in their perspective of each other, both boys could honestly admit that the wonderful feeling that seemed to bloom from the moment like a magical midnight rose, was there again, and this time much more pronounced to the point that it was overwhelming their senses. Warmth from each other seemed to seep to the very cores of their bodies, burning every last existence of the coldness of doubt and fear. In the atmosphere was reassurance, safety and something else that seemed to shine so brightly. Reassurance that everything would be all right in the future somehow, safety that stemmed from being in each other's presence and finally, a most exhilarating feeling that they've never felt before was like Duel Energy running through their veins, very much electrifying and breathtaking. Had it always been there? Or had they just discovered its existence? Either way, both could admit it was present now and stronger more than ever.

Recently, the distance between them was not only physical but emotional, and with this, the hole created by the ache of separation and longing to reconcile was quickly filled by the gentle rains of forgiveness and understanding. Being like this, there were no barriers to separate them, and for now, the Dark Army, the uncertain future, and the cold night were all far away.

The tingling feeling Johan felt back then ran through his body, as if he really was back in that night again, enveloped in Judai's warmth. It was a pleasant feeling at the same time that it was making his heart thump like crazy. He was new to this... Well, he'd never felt this way before with anyone else after all. But that wasn't going to stop him. There was no going back now, and he'd taken more than one step forward anyway. He would have gotten worried but the wonderful feeling soothed him. Floating in between reality and fantasy, he vaguely sensed that Judai's bangs were tickling his face. Such realization only served to increase the tempo of the frenetic dance that his heart was doing.

True, he was unsure how this situation came to be, but there was no uncertainty with the way he held Johan like this. He had the chance to stop this from going stronger when he kept his distance from Johan. But now, he mentally berated himself for even thinking of such a notion. He only made things more difficult, not to mention painful, for both himself and Johan. Well, he'd definitely learned his lesson now and he'd never consider it again, he vowed to himself, as his hand slowly went up towards Johan's hair. The talk they had tonight was to settle their misunderstanding, and this was something that sealed the pact they made in that conversation, no matter how spontaneous. That promise was his purpose and now, more than ever, he wanted to change the grim future that hung over their heads which remained for as long as the Dark Army pursued both of them. Avoiding Johan was so painful, and even though his old belief of avoiding others so as to not involve them nudged at him that this decision was wrong, being far away from Johan both in body and heart and losing him was a price he could never pay, even if he could readily sacrifice everything else.

Johan unconsciously closed his eyes, letting the tender, blissful sensation flow freely throughout his body like a fresh spring. He had to admit that it was so hard to keep up with the dangerously fast pace that his life was taking. There were so many things that he still didn't know, his powers being the forefront of that. The unknown and the darkness that lay ahead was very scary, but if he himself were to get afraid, what more of the people around him, especially the ones who cared so much for him? He had to stay strong and hope. And he would be able to do that much more confidently now that his heart was no longer in turmoil like it was before. It was almost like a fog was slowly being driven away from the entirety of his body and in the abyss of his mind, he could see a light, surely so bright yet barely visible beyond the dissipating haze as if it was being shielded there...

_What was that!_

Johan's mind, already out of focus because of his emotions, was further sent into a scramble upon that sight within him. It was really strange; this feeling that something like a lock was opened in the darkness was every bit unnerving. He hoped that it wasn't going to be something dangerous again.

_...!_

And this time, Johan was sent into another phase of shock, although this was because Judai had wrapped his arms around him, mirroring his sudden act nights ago. But now, there was no panic, uncertainty or fear in them. It... Felt like a sanctuary... A temporary haven from the terrible reality awaiting him outside.

But it existed, and that was what mattered, right?

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Here it is..."

A pile of books collapsed nearby but Fujiwara paid no attention to it as he took out an old-looking tome. Honest in his spirit form merely looked at the fallen books, unruffled that such a thing happened. Indeed, he looked like he was used to such occurrence if his calm demeanour was of any indication.

"Honest."

The angel immediately snapped to attention at his Master's soft voice.

Fujiwara ran a finger down the old yellowing pages of the particular book he took out, deep in thought. Even under only the moonlight, it could be easily seen that the book was worn from age. The Fuser held it delicately in his hands as if it would crumble away if he didn't.

"The situation... is actually a lot more serious than we thought. And... so would the destruction that it will bring in the future."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Aniki?"

Silence.

"Aniki!"

"Uh... Umm... Just a little more... Let me sleep..."

"ANIKI!"

"Wh-wha!"

Judai immediately threw the covers off him as he sat up, hair sticking out in all directions, eyes still unfocused. "Shou?"

The smaller Tamer frowned. "Seriously, Aniki. We have classes today, you know."

"Huh? We have?" Judai blinked, much more awake now.

"Yeah. Despite what happened yesterday... Well, no one was seriously injured so the rest of the classes can take place... according to Daitokuji-sensei anyway."

"Eh? No way..." The brown-haired Tamer pouted, flopping back onto the bed.

"We don't have a choice. Anyway, Aniki, where were you last night? You weren't at your bed when I woke up in the middle of the night."

Judai laughed nervously before flashing a sheepish grin to Shou. "That's... Well... I couldn't sleep... so I was out for a walk?"

"Hmm..." Shou's expression clearly showed that he was not convinced and very suspicious of his friend.

"Really, Shou! I wasn't doing anything suspicious and I came back quickly. And no one saw me so I won't get in trouble!" Judai said cheekily.

Shou crossed his arms and tapped his foot on the ground, frowning at Judai. "Well, if you say so..." He huffed, before a smile makes its way on his face. "... I haven't seen you this happy for so long, Aniki."

In response, Judai smiled happily.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"How are you feeling, Tom?"

The aforementioned was sick in bed with a high fever. Edo adjusted the blanket covering his young adoptive brother. Nero became sick a few days ago, and judging by his worsening condition, it looked it wasn't going to get better anytime soon. Saiou was at work while Mizuchi was cooking food in the kitchen downstairs, leaving Edo to take the de-facto role of taking care of the sick child... not that he had problems with it, of course. He didn't have any teaching work to do for the day anyway, and even if he had, he'd choose to take a day-off.

"Big Brother Edo...?" The ill kid muttered.

"I'm here," the silver-haired teen said reassuringly. Tom coughed for a bit before smiling weakly. "That's... good. Because... you know... I had a dream... that Big Brother Johan... was in... a very dark place. It was scary... and painful and—"

Edo cut the younger boy off, soothingly holding his hand. "Ssh... It's just a dream, Tom. Everything's going to be okay. Johan is in a safe place and nothing bad will happen to him. So do your best to get better, all right? So that you would be able to greet him when he comes back home."

The orphan child was near tears from recounting his experience but did not cry outright at the calming of Edo. He just nodded timidly, usual vigour gone because of the illness. He seemed afraid to close his eyes and sleep, probably due to the possibility of another bad dream but he trusted in the words of his adoptive older brother and eventually rested. Edo sighed, taking the opportunity to adjust the wet cloth on Tom's forehead.

Ever since Johan left the orphanage, there was a noticeable change in the atmosphere in the house. Somehow, it didn't seem so... lively anymore. Sure, the kids would still play and be happy but perhaps the joy brought about by Johan's stories and flute-playing was a different kind, one that was quite as magical as he was, and the impact he had over the little kids was more than just physical as a big brother to them. He'd eventually become a sort of 'light' for all of them even if they had never noticed it. Or maybe it was that they'd just accepted it casually without knowing its importance?

He frowned as he leaned back on the chair he was sitting on. He might have said that to Tom but... He couldn't deny that he was not completely confident about the situation either. The teen prided himself on his unshakeable composure that earned him the title of "Gentleman Prodigy" but even that solid self-control was challenged by a human fear of the unknown. He often won, beating down his tumultuous emotions into submission to present people with his coolness under pressure facade.

But he also often got the same dark foreboding of the possible future that Tom just mentioned.

Because even he could not predict the possible outcome of this entire situation.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

_It was a majestic place._

_The walls were made of stone and solid bricks that looked like they would not yield. The lighting was provided by rows of torches, each one bursting with a brilliant flame amidst the faint light of the night evident from the gigantic glass windows, even if they could not completely brighten the entire place. Draperies hung symmetrically in velvet cloth while the space was wide enough to hold in capacity a huge crowd._

_It was a very typical throne room._

_However, the aura of the place was far from ordinary, seemingly brought about by the occupants themselves._

"_The balance of power will crumble soon."_

_A concerned voice pierced the silence._

"_I know."_

_A different tone countered it, this one much calmer and devoid of worry, clearly contrasting the earlier voice._

_The first speaker's anxiousness was increased rather than assured by the confident statement. "What if a war happens...?"_

"_It would eventually turn into a war, one way or another. The only question is when it will formally begin."_

_To hear such a grim statement from a steady voice predictably shocked the frantic person. "If that is the case, then why..."_

_The calm speaker, who had been up until now, seated on the throne, stood up. A red cape flaunted his aura, lightly billowing as he slowly walked across the room. "You are worried about this."_

"_Your Majesty..."_

_Turning back, the royal guy showed a small smile, illuminated in the moonlight from the window rather than the light of fire. "For that I am thankful, even though this might come across as insensitivity on my part. Because it makes me feel that your oath to protect me does not just come from your sense of duty... Rather, you really desire to protect me from the bottom of your heart."_

"_My king, that is...!"_

"_Yes, I am delaying the topic with this, so I will go back." The king chuckled, non-mocking mirth apparent in his tones. "Regarding the situation... I am not a believer of destiny, but I admit that this is unavoidable because of the lure of power."_

_He sighed. "We are all human, granted access to what is practically unlimited power. With force being the only unreliable implementer of discipline, is it not a surprise at all that sooner or later, desire for power and domination would eventually rise to the surface and override the morals of the people? War is the product of greed, the desire of something, be it well-intentioned or not."_

"_But you are the king, the strongest in the land. You can defeat them, and I will be by your side."The follower respectfully reasoned out._

"_Ah, that may be so. But I myself know well that the power of one can be overcome by unity of several," was his declaration, outlined by a tone of enigma._

_A short silence ensued, the servant seemingly pondering the meaning of that odd statement. Then the king said, "However, we are not alone in working to prevent this imminent disaster."_

"_Because of your knights?"_

"_Both as a king and as a magician," he replied with a mysterious smile. Then his expression changed to one of seriousness as he asked, "Do you think that power should be limited?"_

_The king's servant thought over his answer carefully, the sheen of his black eyes seemingly changing by the unstable light provided by the flickering flames of the room. "If it would otherwise lead to destruction, then I think it is a viable option," he said honestly._

_Momentary silence passed, the weight of the answer hung in the air as neither spoke. The king's gaze was fixed on his companion, studying with an unfathomable stare that did not betray the notions running through his mind. Yet even under this potent gaze, the servant was not intimidated at all, his figure not faltering at the slightest bit. Was it a display of bravery... _

_... Or a silent declaration of unwavering trust?_

_Nodding, the king stated, "Yes. That is what I also think about all of this. It does seem to be the solution that would settle the situation." But then he chuckled humourlessly as he said, "However... do you not think that it is strange when you view it from a different perspective?"_

"_If we put a restraint on power, we will prevent its abuse. But while access to the power can be controlled, the human desire cannot be restrained. Rather, the more we prevent people from obtaining power, the greater their desire will be to break the rules. Like a greedy treasure hunter who is not afraid of the dangers that he will face as long as he reaches the treasure in the end. After all, the greater the quantity of traps and barriers protecting the treasure, the more it becomes valuable to the eyes which are clouded by greed..." The royal man stated this all as he walked back to sit down on the throne. With an elbow propped on the armrest, his head tilted against a gloved hand. "... What do you think of that?"_

_The servant was left speechless at first but he still replied in the end. "It... It is also true, Your Majesty."_

"_It is certainly depressing, but it is a truth that we must accept... Much in the same way as recognizing the fact that we have no choice but to do this."_

"_But—"_

_The doors of the room burst open with a crash and an armoured servant came running in with a panicked face, surprising the previous occupants of the room and making them turn their attention to him. _

"_Your Majesty! It's terrible! Cobalt Village is—!"_

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Hey, it's you again!"

Judai was slack-jawed at seeing the mysterious young kid again, who merely stared at him with cat-like red eyes as he hung with his arms on the branch of a tree in the Academia's mini-forest. Smiling widely, he let go and dropped to the ground freely, cushioning his fall by stomping hard on the bed of leaves below. In the process, he created a ripple effect, causing other leaves to fly throughout the air in a flurry. It was a strange sight, as if the dry leaves were dancing in midair. But pretty soon, some of them were carried further away by stray winds but every single one eventually landed back on the forest floor. And there was the young boy, standing as if he didn't just drop from a _high _branch of a tree. The fact that said kid's grin was not affected whatsoever by his stunt was coming off as terrifying.

Judai concluded once again. _'This kid is weird.' _The evidence kept piling up.

"Did I not tell you that you would see me again?" The red-eyed boy inquired with a tilt of his head, as if he was naturally curious as to why it would not be a logical conclusion.

The Tamer blinked as he recalled. "Oh right, you did..." He didn't know why, but his instinct was telling him earlier today when he passed by the entrance of the forest to go in. Well, he was the type to trust his instincts more than anything so he followed it. And it led him to the earlier sight. He was actually on his way to see Johan then. Things were really getting strange. Kuriboh poked out from under his vest and ran excitedly toward its friend. The kid giggled while patting the ferret on the head.

Judai sighed. He really should be used to the kid's dissonant and abrupt actions by now. "Anyway, why are you still here? If you're hiding in the forest, that must mean you're not related to anybody, are you?"

With a rustle, Kuriboh jumped out of the strange boy's arms and skittered toward the side before gazing with its beady black eyes. His head was bowed low, purple tufts of hair shadowing his eyes ominously.

"_**You broke the second seal."**_

A chill tided over him as Judai was literally frozen in the spot once the smaller boy tossed his head up and pinned him with an unsettling gaze from shimmering blood red orbs. His face was so blank, but his crimson eyes were a different matter. Neither accusatory nor soft, the stare lingered between those two kinds although it was definitely powerful. The tone of that voice was still of an innocent child's and it was such a discord to the uttered sentence. Suddenly, the air felt so different, so detached, and so unnerving. Kuriboh had taken refuge under a large leaf with a quiver, but still peeked out from under with its sleek head.

Even in his mind-petrified state, Judai was able to retain what he heard.

'_Seal?'_

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Thank you, Lilyvere-san."

"Only as long as you promise to look out for yourself more, all right? As much as the infirmary is open, it's not a second home, if you keep getting life-threatening injuries, dear."

"W-well... I'll try, in any case...!"

And Johan shut the door before the school nurse could add more things on the list about things he should not be doing if he wanted to stay away from the clinic. It's not that he was attached to the place or something, but then the motherhen matron was most likely just worried about him, even if she had a weird way of showing it. Taking a deep breath, he began to walk away from the infirmary carrying a small bag that contained his used clothes and a few school notes. He winced as he remembered that he stayed for an entire week there, as opposed to two or three days. It was because, for some reason, there were particular periods over the days when his whole body would just ache so much he could barely stand up and then there were times wherein he would feel electrified as if bolts were travelling through his blood. The pain seemed to reach the very core of his soul.

Frankly, it scared him as much as it _hurt_. According to Ayukawa-sensei and Lilyvere-san, it was most likely the kickback from too much usage of energy but he felt it was something else. It did not ache to this intensity when he first used magic months ago. He wondered if it had anything to do with the new kind of magic he was able to do; it appeared to use a lot of his energy in turn for causing damage with a lot of magic energy. It was almost a miracle as to how he'd endured it all in the past week. Truly it hurt, but it had subsided over time until he no longer experienced the spasmodic attacks and that's why he could now go back.

Well, not everything was fine and dandy though. He still had detention to do to make up for the destruction he caused, even if it wasn't entirely his fault, and that he was the victim in the first place. But he was the one who destroyed the barrier so he still had a hand in the chaos. Lucky for him that there were people who witnessed what really happened, so the three guys who bullied him were punished for their acts. There was also the fact that thanks to his display of magic, most students went out of their way to stay away from him and were now afraid of him, fearing that if he was angry enough, he'd go do an outburst of magic to decimate the school. It was ridiculous, really, because it was not in his nature to do such a thing and he was explicitly forbidden to do that form of his magic by the headmaster himself, and only under the watchful supervision of a teacher. Besides, he was threatened with even more detention or a possible expulsion if he actually did do it, although he'd be exposed to outside danger if that actually happened.

Sighing, he entered the dorm room he shared with Fujiwara, noticing that his companion wasn't in the room. Setting his bag down, it was unavoidable that he'd notice the piece of paper lying on his bed. Eyebrow instinctually rising in curiosity and confusion, he took it and read it, briefly wondering if it was just one of Fujiwara's random drawings and symbols. But his guess was not off, after all, for it was indeed a message from his older schoolmate.

_There is no need to rush, nor should you take things too slow or you will only be left behind._

_Sometimes, a single step is all you need to reach the place you want._

Johan didn't know if he should be grateful for the seemingly encouraging words or if he should be frustrated at the fact that the instructions left behind by Fujiwara was written in _riddles_. It was obviously the older teen's handwriting, and he could only wonder why it was written as such. He was about to get out of the room and leave, when the glimmer of orange caught his eye. It was a feather, which apparently had been under the paper so it was hidden until Johan took the note from on top of it to read.

Recognition dawned on his mind as he picked it up as well. The feather was from Honest. White but with sweeps of orange and light yellow, it was unmistakably from the angel. Before Johan could contemplate why it was there, the feather shone before disintegrating into tiny particles of light which went into the paper clutched in Johan's other hand, engulfing it in a momentary bright light.

When the flash died down, Johan stared at the note, blinking in confusion because the previous writings were gone. Instead, there was a different message now, and the moment his eyes laid upon the new words, a bolt of pain struck his head, as a rainbow line cut across his eyesight. His vision wavered and he almost buckled down from dizziness and it was only firm will that kept him standing. Yet, as quickly as it came, the pain was gone and his eyesight was slowly going back to normal.

_That... was weird._

He now turned his attention back to the note at hand, and his eyes widened when an entirely different message blinked back at him.

_Go to the usual training place with your magic. _

_You have permission._

...WHAT?

It took a good few minutes before Johan was able to feel the weight of the message. Dimension Crossing? B-but... But he failed at tha-

'_Don't be afraid of your own power.'_

Judai's words echoed in his mind... and he felt like an idiot for panicking. He took a deep breath, calming himself down. Now he had one more reason to be grateful for meeting Judai. Gripping the note tightly in his hand, he looked seriously ahead, where slim beams of the afternoon light filtered through the window. His mind made up, he pocketed the piece of paper and closed his eyes, immersing himself in his own inner world. He raised his right hand till it was level with his chest and concentrated. The feeling of his surroundings slowly diminished to give way to the black world of his soul. Strange... Back then, it was only inky comforting darkness. But now, there were floating crystals in the area like miniature islands. Without any shine or twinkle, they were more like unassuming clouds than translucent, polished precious rocks. However, he had no time to dwell on the mystery of their sudden appearance, so he diverted his attention into gathering his Duel Energy.

Fujiwara was testing him. Not only his control of his magic but also his resolve. Of course. After what he just did, it would have been normal if he were a mess of nerves, scared of what he had done and be hesitant to use his power again. He'd witnessed the destruction he could cause with his unknown magic. He'd seen what he was capable of, and how dangerous it could be if the power fell into the wrong hands. He'd finally understood the weight of the consequences that came with being a magician.

He would be scared.

And that would make him _doubt_.

...That was it. He'd found his answer. This was the reason why his Dimension Crossing failed after the night Judai hugged him.

Miniature pieces of gems appeared out of thin air in front of Johan, gathering to form the familiar gem-shaped portal like diamond dust. Power was flowing out of Johan's body as he remained mentally deep within himself.

At that time, he began to get uncertain about his relationship with Judai. He was afraid of breaking their friendship yet he never talked to Judai about it to clear things up. He thought the stalemate of vagueness was a delicate balance that he would break if he disturbed it by confronting his best friend. But his curiosity fought it with equal ferocity and it had left him as a mental and emotional mess who could only think of what-ifs and possibilities.

It was the same with his power. Unconsciously or not, he'd actually been frightened of his very own magic ability. There was the factor of it being unknown, but he held so many qualms about it. He wasn't able to conquer the fear of his own power, and that's why that incident happened. Regretting it was out of the picture, but in a way, it was almost as if his own magic was telling him to accept reality, even if it had to be a straightforward slap in the face. Yes, he had power, it could go out of control, it could hurt people, and it could cause destruction. So what was he going to do?

His heartbeat skipped a fraction of a second as he formed a determined resolution within himself. Accept it, settle it, and not run away from it. Yes, like his feelings that were in a mess before a week ago. He was the one creating his own fears through his doubts. He should not let things hang in the air unresolved. And this... This was what finally realized the night he and Judai finally faced the truth.

But what about the future, which is oh-so-grim and dark, enshrouded with the veil of unknown?

The future... The exit of Dimension Crossing portals... Both were things that had no certainty to them. He could envision the place he wanted to go, but there was no guarantee he'd end up there the moment he steps into the portal and it terrified him if it so happened that he made a mistake and end up outside the school, or worse, in the middle of danger. When it came to his magic, Fujiwara did remind him that it was deeply connected to his heart and his emotions. In his moments of doubt such as when he harboured that thought, it was human instinct to turn to safety, and even if he was not fully aware of it at that time, he already had considered refuge in Judai. That was most likely why his wayward portals appeared near the Tamer.

The tension between him and Judai was finally burned away because he took the courage to go ahead and ask Judai, rather than drown in his uncertainties and fears.

Could he do the same for his magic?

He slowly opened his eyes, and was met by a scene so familiar to him. The white light that shone from the passageway of the gem portal revealed nothing of the secrets of the other side. A door to another place, yet at the same time not a door for there was nothing blocking entrance to it, which showed another contradiction because even if it was open, not a speck of the destination could be discerned. It was truly a test of bravery, resolve and conviction without intending to.

Johan lowered his hand limply to the side as he stared at the pentagon portal. He'd done it. After a long time of being unable to even begin the process of creating portals, the feeling of success was absolutely wonderful.

_Sometimes, a single step is all you need to reach the place you want._

He felt the beginnings of a smile make its way to his face. If he had not talked with Judai, he'd probably still be a bundle of nerves now. That night brought about more changes than he thought. In a way, it was a beginning.

He pulled away from his thoughts and looked at the Dimension Crossing portal again. Dare he take that single step?

His smile grew wider.

'_More than that. It's... a leap of faith!'_

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Fujiwara turned a page of the book he was reading, unmindful of the very bright light emanating from above a few meters away from where he sat under the shade of a tree, back propped against the trunk.

A few minutes later, there was the unmistakable sound of the arrival of a new person. Only this time, said person dropped from the bright light with a graceful landing. The older Fuser glanced at the corner of his eyes as Johan exited his Dimension Crossing portal without as much as a panicked shout. Johan descended to the ground in a crouched position, head bowed from the momentum.

The book in Fujiwara's hands snapped close at a light twist of his palms at the same time as Johan's exit portal disintegrated into tiny powder shards. The gem pieces began falling down like stardust particles, sparkling as they rained over Johan. Fujiwara's usual serious face was devoid of it, as he showed an expression that was a cross between a small smile and a proud smirk.

"You have slacked off long enough."

Johan looked up, peridot eyes gleaming with life. He chuckled.

"Yeah!"

**To be continued...**

* * *

Yay! The ending is not a cliffhanger for once! ...Oh wait, it isn't? Judai's in trouble?

Whoops. xD

Well, that's something to wait for in the next chapter, right? *gets pelted by stuffed animals*

Truthfully, ever since Chapter 5 I've been waiting to get to this part. But of course, it was not possible without setting up the conflict first, along with the parallelism. I think I've tested your patience long enough, dear readers. If you got this far without dying from all the deep thinking and long-winded conversations of the characters in the story, that's some effort because when I was rechecking the fic, even I got lost. Haha.

Once again, I strike. I did reveal the 'truth', only to raise more questions, eh? When Judai discovered his Fusion, I'm sure there were a lot of strange things there. What about that flashback in the middle? Then, there's the cliffhanger (in the middle?). Oh, there's also a glimpse of the situation back at the orphanage. Things would probably start picking up soon~

I hope you enjoyed it regardless.

Next chapter preview:

So what is this seal, anyway? Oh and it looks like detention won't be as simple as sitting in a desk waiting for hours to pass. Looks like trouble is brewing for Johan... again.

Review if you please. All comments and suggestions are appreciated.

~Rine-Line


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